THE HOLE (15)

VERY little has been seen of this mysterious film but with more twists than a rollercoaster and a scary atmosphere to match, it should prove worth your ticket money.

Director Nick Hamm's work is very much a cross between The Blair Witch Project and Scream combining the stark atmosphere of the former with the teen-slashing tendencies of the latter.

An extremely eerie and disconcerting opening sequence to the film will ensure the edges of the country's cinema seats will be worn out and the story then develops well, with Hamm subtly hiding key elements of the plot and therefore building up the tension wonderfully.

The story sees a group of four private school students, who are desperate to escape a school trip and so hide themselves away in an old nuclear bunker for a few days.

Eighteen days later Liz, (American Beauty's Thora Birch), emerges and what happens after then becomes the subject of the film, as the student tries to piece together the events of her stay in The Hole.

However, when Liz's best friend Martin, (Daniel Brocklebank), who Liz claims helped to set up the stay in the hole for the four, is arrested by police he paints a much darker picture of what went on.

Confused? I think you are meant to be, and the combination of unclear motives, back-stabbing and maggots means the resulting film twists its way to a gripping conclusion which is satisfying enough.

The quality of the film is mainly a result of the very different settings and approach and Birch's accent is passably English with the other performances being good enough, apart from the Sean Bean lookalike who plays the cop.

The ending is quite original which should leave room for plenty of discussion over a post-cinematic pint.

Verdict: Very Deep

Rating: 7/10

Reviewed by PETE HENSHAW

COMPETITION

WE have a family ticket, worth £20, valid from Monday-Thursday to give away for a film of your choice at the Odeon in Festival Park, Hanley.

To enter answer the following question and send the answer along with a daytime phone number to Cinema Comp, Crewe Guardian, 42 High Street, Crewe, CW2 7BN.

Tell us the name of the Oscar-winning film in which Thora Birch starred with Kevin Spacey and have your answers in by May 3. The winner for the April 12 competition is Mrs AG Morris.