“Premonition” builds suspense but never delivers

Derek Frazier

March 20, 2007 11:28 am

— Despite rather uninteresting previews, I decided to watch “Premonition” and didn’t expect much in the end. While I can’t say it was the best movie in the world, it wasn’t exactly the worst either.
“Premonition” begins with the memory of All-American couple Jim and Linda Hanson (Julian McMahon and Sandra Bullock) pulling up to their new home in Jim’s classic black Mustang convertible (It’s apparent the scene is a memory due to the lack of color of the scene.)
The two make their way into their new home and the next scene jumps several years ahead where the couple has two daughters, Bridgette and Megan.
After dropping off the kids at school, Linda goes about performing her usual housewife duties until she receives a knock at the door from the local sheriff, telling her that Jim has been killed in a car accident.
Distraught and in shock, Linda’s mother arrives to help her daughter through the difficult time. Linda dozes off for the night, only to wake up in the morning lying next to Jim. Puzzled, she suspiciously approaches the day and doesn’t know whether she’s dreaming or awake. The day ends in a typical fashion with nothing out of the ordinary.
Linda once again wakes up, only this time it’s the day of the funeral of her husband. Even more confused and agitated, she refuses to believe that Jim is dead.
The day continues and while attending Jim’s funeral at the cemetery, Linda sees a woman watching from a distance. She confronts her only to be told that Linda met her the day before.
The day ends and guess what? Yep, Linda is back to the days before her husband’s death. This routine continues for several more days, allowing viewers to take notice and make mental notes to try to figure out what’s happening and whether everyone is being 100 percent truthful.
It may seem confusing, but the overall plot of “Premonition” is easy to follow. Events happen out of sequence; however, scenarios building up to those events are outlined well.
The only real problem with the movie is that while it does build up to the film’s climax, the shock or awe factor never really arrives. In fact, the ending sort of deflates the entire suspenseful mood.
Bullock usually does well in dramatic films, as this role reminded me of her performance from 1995s “The Net.”
As mentioned previously, I wasn’t expecting much, but at least I was kept entertained during most of the movie. I’m sure movie goers will feel the same way.