So much average

Did you people see the same film I saw?

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

Mark and Mary and son Brendon retreat to the family's remote holiday house in order to recover from a tragedy, only to find that the new neighbours have it in mind to find out as much as possible about them, kill them, and steal their identities.This film has a good cast (albeit the two male leads are each playing the part the other should have played), good performances, and an intriguing (if underwritten) character in the baddie's "wife". On the other hand, it has a very slow start, a plot we've seen a hundred times, victims who annoyingly fail to take advantage when they have the upper hand, a climax which is over and done with in no time flat, and a desaturated colour palette.Is the good sufficient to outweigh the negative? That's your decision. For me, it was borderline.

This movie reminds me of many other films I had watched and they all seem like simple horror/thrillers without any special depth or meaning. But look closely. Almost in all of these flicks there are white, rich, good looking, pleasant, upstanding families (always family with those annoying cute children) against The Others. Who are those others? Poor. Degenerate, immoral, stupid, isolated from the real world and living in their own wretched places;ready to shoot without any reason... just for fun. But it is not merely about some brutal games; it is about their resentment towards successful. It's envy that motivates them because they (poor)are told by society they are idiots,lazy, brutal, prone to vice so they get nothing that "good" citizens enjoy. Brutes get none and the only joy in life seems according to all those movies is tormenting good citizens. They can't have what wealthy do so they would torture and kill out of pure jealousy. Watch when they observe the luxurious cottage. Their eyes ooze with hate mixed with envy. The only way they can get even is to terrorize good upper middle class and they do it for some time - just to give viewers necessary thrills. But fortunately goodness prevails and police is there to restore order to our relief. Happy ending is imminent(minus brother who does play minor role and can vanish without a pity).The movie shows tendency about what our world is slowly becoming: returning to Victorian times with their strict social order and moral judgement about rich, middle class,and poor - who all get what they deserve. And for wretched ... well there will be noting but misery of their own doing But wait: there are more and more of those destitute souls because of messy economy. And then what? Will Hollywood dare to continue this negative portrait of new impoverished masses? Be warn. You and me may find ourselves among them.

Home-invasion thriller is nothing new. We have seen them before in movies like STRAW DOGS (1971), right down to FUNNY GAMES (2007) and THE STRANGERS (2008). As formulaic or shopworn that particular subgenre is, home-invasion thriller can still be a gripping cinematic experience if done with the right level of skill and intelligence. Fortunately, first-time feature director Jeremy Power Regimbal's IN THEIR SKIN (formerly known as REPLICAS -- which sounds too sci-fi for me) manages to give this an otherwise same-old genre thriller with a disturbingly edgy undertone and particularly heighten the movie with compelling performances by its leads.The setup is familiar: upscale couple Mark and Mary Hughes (Joshua Close, Selma Blair) are trying to overcome their grief after the recent death of their young daughter in a car accident. They decide to travel to their family's country home with 8-year-old son Brendon (Quinn Lord) in hope to spend some quality time together.After a strange encounter with a mysterious truck that pulls up to their property's gate before driving away, the couple are woken the following morning by neighbors Bobby (James D'Arcy), Jane (Rachel Miner), and their 9-year-old son Jared (Alex Ferris). Apparently they brought over firewood as a kindly gesture to welcome them as new neighbors. Although Mark is feeling weird with their off-putting behaviors, he ends up reluctantly agrees to invite them over for dinner that night. So far, so good until Bobby becomes so persistent on asking deeply personal questions, which made both Mark and Mary uncomfortable. The supposedly pleasant dinner turns even more disastrous when their son Jared puts a knife to Brendon's throat when they argue over a video game. Mark feels something is not right, and force them to leave, even though the neighbors have been repeatedly apologize.Then that same night, it doesn't take long before Mark and Mary find themselves under siege, with their dog apparently shot somewhere in the dark woods. This time, the same neighbors forcing their way back into the house. A violent cat and mouse ensue, and the neighbors begin to reveal their true motivations. Soon the Hughes learn that their neighbors are one bizarre, yet psychotic family intends to get rid of them and assume their identities.Director Regimbal does a good job building up the slow-burning tension piece by piece, while the sudden shock of unflinching violence is cleverly done in a restrained manner without relying heavily on elaborate gory set-piece to make its point. Co-star Joshua Close, who also writes the screenplay, gives an equally thought-provoking storyline that builds on the characters' psychological depths as well as playing the cards right on its genre convention. Meanwhile, Keith Power's bone-chilling score and Norm Li's darkly atmospheric cinematography are equally well done to provide the necessary claustrophobic feel required for this kind of genre thriller.Above all, it was the cast that gives this movie an extra edge. Both Joshua Close and Selma Blair give emotionally compelling performances here, while James D'Arcy makes a truly creepy psychopath here. His particular scene, which is nevertheless the movie's centerpiece, involves him forcing the couple to have sex in front of him, before proceeding for a near-rape sequence between him and Mary. Rachel Miner, in the meantime, is equally creepy as a meek invader who has a disturbing mind on her own.While there are times this home-invasion thriller does relies too much on its genre convention to get everything goes around, IN THEIR SKIN remains a solid little thriller nonetheless. Again, kudos goes to Jeremy Power Regimbal, who made a good impression with his directing debut. He is certainly a bright filmmaker to look for in the future.

In Their Skin (formerly "Replicas") is Regimbal's directorial debut, but armed with a strong cast and a solid screenplay, he creates a web of worthwhile scenes that will stick with the viewer. Perhaps misguidedly toying with the horror genre early in the film, he chooses the focus on the drama, the characters and story and let you decide if you are endeared, amused, scared, uneasy, entertained or otherwise.Regimbal stays with this beautiful ambiguity for most of the feature and gets fine-tuned performances from his story and character-driven cast that allows for the "replicas" to reveal themselves slowly, but surely. The suspense is high and the dark humour as well. A beautiful piece with a slow burn pace. We left the Montreal FantAsia screening and director Q&A with more questions than answers, but with deep satisfaction of exploring a compelling concept with complexity, dexterity and depth.