'Pirates' director Verbinski scares up a 'Cure' on video
Gore Verbinski isn't a household name, but some of his movies are - the first three "Pirates of the Caribbean" epics, the Naomi Watts horror remake "The Ring" and the Oscar-winning animated animal tale "Rango," to name a few.
He's one of the most interesting, versatile and underappreciated directors in Hollywood, and his latest film is now available for rental and purchase on Blu-ray, DVD and digital platforms.
"A Cure for Wellness" came and went in theaters earlier this year; such is the misfortune of a 147-minute horror film opening on Valentine's weekend. Dane DeHaan (Green Goblin in "The Amazing Spider-Man 2") stars as Lockhart, a young, brash executive who is given an ultimatum: Retrieve Pembroke, the company's CEO (Harry Groener, the mayor from TV's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"), from his Switzerland retreat, or take the fall for him when the SEC comes calling.
So off he goes into the Swiss Alps, accompanied by breathtaking cinematography from Bojan Bazelli ("Pete's Dragon"), to find the mountaintop sanitarium where Pembroke is hoping to find a cure - for what, no one seems to know. Volmer (Jason Isaacs), the spa's director, seems to keep Pembroke just out of Lockhart's reach, and his wispy daughter, Hannah (Mia Goth), is forever lurking, sometimes atop the compound's high stone walls. What secrets are they hiding?
Before long, Lockhart becomes a patient himself (I won't spoil how) and begins Volmer's regimen of treatments. These include a terrifying sequence inside a sensory deprivation tank. Were those giant eels really in there with Lockhart or was it a hallucination?
"A Cure for Wellness" takes its time; Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining" is a clear model for pace and plotting. The payoff, when it comes, pushes the boundaries of good taste and may be too disgusting for some viewers. Naturally, I loved it.
In a 20-year career that began with the Nathan Lane kiddie caper "Mouse Hunt," Verbinski has shown incredible range in a series of big-budget studio pictures, all without losing his off-kilter humor or a sense of danger. "A Cure for Wellness" is the strangest, most adult film yet from the man who first gave us Capt. Jack Sparrow, and I can't wait to see what's next.
• Sean Stangland is a Daily Herald multiplatform editor. He highly recommends you watch the train shootout from the end of Verbinski's "The Lone Ranger." You can follow him on Twitter at @SeanStanglandDH.