There's a fine line between starting over and losing everything, between taking on a new life and fundamentally altering a way of life, between a
truthful past and a suddenly divergent future. Longtime television Director Thomas J. Wright's (amongst his credits is an episode of the acclaimed "Firefly") Hiding tells the story of a young high school-aged
girl beginning life anew, with a new identity, a different past, and an uncertain future as part of the witness protection program. But as might be
excepted -- it's a movie, after all, not an easy happily, contently, or even safely ever after -- there are problems. Unfortunately, the problems
don't begin and end with the challenges of adapting to a new life and fending off bad guys. Hiding, as casually entertaining as it may be,
plays with a terrible lack of creativity. It's a by-the-book, play-it-safe Thriller if there ever was one. It offers nothing other than a quick, easy,
palatable, but forgettable ninety minute cinema escape. It's competently assembled but unless this is the first Thriller anyone's ever seen, audiences
are going to walk away from Hiding with a shrug of the shoulders, already thinking about what to watch next.
Someone else.
They say the truth will set one free, but that truism just isn't true when the truth might get one killed. Case in point: Jo Russo (Ana Villafañe), who
really isn't Jo Russo. She's Alicia, a New York girl whose life is no longer what it was. She's in the witness protection program and is moved
to the
middle-of-nowhere Longview, where the local high school educates only 200 pupils and the greasy burger joint is the town's claim to fame. She's
told she must never again speak Spanish, pick up a paint brush, or pine for New York. Jo
moves in with the welcoming but somewhat smothering Debbie Kellerman (Natalie Radford) and her teenage daughter Laurie (Candace Marie), with
whom Jo becomes
reluctant friends. Jo catches the eye of
school jock Brett (Jeremy Sumpter), but Jo has her eye on a student-artist named Jesse (Tyler Blackburn), who serves as something of a connection
to her former life. Just as Jo settles into her new environment, she gets the sinking feeling that she's being watched; indeed, a thug named Ostrog
(Dean Armstrong) has tracked her cross-country, and he'll stop at nothing to take Jo out once and for all.
No matter how well the character blends into her new digs, how much the movie draws its audience into the world of Longview, Hiding just
cannot mask its obvious shortcomings. The picture yanks every
single last element straight out of that mystical movie playbook, story-building through flashbacks, painting a single dimensional picture of a
multidimensional situation, and settling for, largely, underdeveloped characters rather than make an effort to reshape them into something a little
different from the norm. In Hiding, there's the pretty heroine-in-peril, the devious and cunning man coming after her, the clique that
disapproves of its new classmate, and the artist who effortlessly works his way into the girl's heart. About the only character who breaks from cliché
is Brett, the varsity jacket-wearing "captain" of a sports team who doesn't act the jock at all but rather the mostly nice guy who wants the girl,
works hard to get her, and seems content to be himself rather than a mere image of the classic high school athlete. Brett and his romantic "rival"
Jesse prove
surprisingly effective in injecting the movie with some tenderness, appearing as genuine people rather than absolutely clichéd cutouts. But generally
speaking, the movie fumbles along through its uninteresting character roster, moving from one predictable plot point to the next, quickly and
efficiently arriving at a tidy and safe little all-too-easy ending that's really all the movie could do, considering how gentle, routine, and unadventurous
it had been to that point.
Yet the various problems aside, Wright manages to craft a watchable, serviceable little venture that won't wind up on any top-ten lists or dazzle with
originality or purpose, but Hiding does succeed as simple, easy, mindless entertainment. It's very much black-and-white, easy to root for
good and despise bad. Even as the movie ticks along through its contrived elements, it does so with the precision of a Swiss watch, even as the
picture surrenders to easy ways in and out, thoughtless advances towards the finish line, such as "girl must fit in at new school," "rivals who sniff
out flaws in the girl's history," "dueling love interests," and "the bad guy who catches a slip and manages to track down his prey." There's no sense
of importance to the movie, but give it credit for finding a rhythm even when it absolutely lacks tension. But the biggest drawback comes in
the acting; there are no exceptional performances -- how could there be with characters as stock as these -- but a few still rise above the pack. Ana
Villafañe, who's nearly a spitting image of Anne Hathaway, settles into her character early on and does all she can to
explore Jo's past, present, and possible futures. She's given precious little material with which to work, to build the character up beyond good looks
and a troubled interior behind an exterior struggling to remain calm. Dean Armstrong doesn't necessarily disappoint as the film's villain -- he
manages an odd sort of creepy vibe as he spends the majority of the picture attempting to glean information on Jo's whereabout with a smile on his
face and a twinkle in his eye -- but the performance disappoints at film's end, largely a fault of a wayward script rather than a disinterested
performance. The "clique" captures the generic teenage girl angle a little too well to the point of obnoxiousness, but the boys playing Brett
and
Jesse, as noted, largely carry the film beyond Villafañe.
Hiding's Blu-ray release reveals a good-looking 1080p video transfer. Anchor Bay's widescreen image impresses from beginning to end and
under most any visual, day or night, bright or dark, vibrant or drab. Details are crisply defined and very clear and natural throughout. Close-ups reveal
natural facial intricacies, clothing seams and stitches, and general surface and façade details around both the school and the Kellerman house. Just as
important, the image remains well-defined and stable at any distance. Colors are sparkling, very accurate and consistently so. The transfer handles the
entire spectrum with pleasant ease, from natural greens to the school's dark red brick exterior, from darker varsity jackets to brightly-colored dresses.
Black levels appear spot-on, shadow detail is fine, and flesh tones are accurate. The image does suffer through some moderate-to-heavy banding at
times, but such is the only real negative. On the whole, this is a strong release from Anchor Bay.
Hiding debuts on Blu-ray with a satisfactory Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. This isn't the sort to rattle the neighbors or even disturb
someone in the next room. It's subtle but effective, playing without an abundance of raw energy and volume but instead adequate clarity and attention
to detail. Music plays without much audible enthusiasm, but it's steady and nicely balanced across the front yet with little surround support.
Atmospherics follow suit. Nighttime country ambience or the din of a busy school hallway play nicely across the front, but there's never much of an
authentic sense of environmental immersion. A few scattered action effects play with respectable presence and a handful of gunshots ring out with fair
accuracy but not a whole lot of body. Generally, Hiding is a talk-heavy movie, and the spoken word plays clearly and crisply from the center
channel. This isn't an eardrum-shattering listen, but audiences should be satisfied with these sonic results.
Going Into Hiding: Tranformation of Alicia to Jo (1080p, 4:58): Ana Villafañe discusses the characters she plays while in the
makeup chair undergoing the transformation process from Alicia to Jo.
Behind the Scenes - Chuckwagon Cafe (1080p, 2:31): The cast discusses the hamburger eating scene.
Tom & Danny (1080p, 5:16): A look at the film's director and cinematographer.
Carter's Last Will (1080p, 2:53): A "deleted scene" of sorts that features the Carter character recording his last will and testament.
Hiding has all the makings of a bad picture, but credit Director Thomas J. Wright and cast for overcoming a terribly unimaginative script and
crafting a movie that's at least passably entertaining. The picture doesn't redefine much of anything, and instead exemplifies the play-it-safe Thriller, the
girl-in-danger picture watered down to a PG-13 level. But even through its many flaws, Hiding makes for a halfway enjoyable watch, even if it's
of the old "watch-and-forget" variety. Anchor Bay's Blu-ray release of Hiding delivers high quality video, good lossless audio, and a few
supplements. Hiding is definitely worth a rental, and it's just enjoyable enough that it could become a movie worth watching once
every few years. Whenever it plummets in price, pick it up.
