Th13teen – For Sale by Owner (2005)

Directed by: Pritesh Chheda | 85 minutes | thriller | Actors: Amanda Brown, John Lansch, Marc Hustvedt, Trant Batey, Rachel Robertson, Andy Wilson, Erika Santos, Audrey Davis, Michael Morlan, Lowell Moore, Lauren Alexander, Amy Levin, Eric De Los Santos, Andrew Perkel, Pritesh Chheda, Steve Wright, Gabi Walker, Nicole Chheda, Herman Whitney III, Catina L., Kam Devil

Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Rear Window’ was a phenomenon because the entire movie took place within a single room. Since then, many film productions have tried to match the success of Hitchcock’s classic with this concept, for example ‘Panic Room’. ‘Th13teen’ may not be set purely in a single room, but in one house, so you can also put this psychological thriller in the same row.

When Sera (Amanda Brown) comes home after shopping, she turns out to be not the only person in her house. Andrew Byrd (John Lansch), a real estate agent, has come in through the back door to speak to Sera’s husband about selling the house. However, Sera’s husband is not there and Sera finds it very suspicious that a stranger just enters through the back door. This is especially true because the small town of Emeryville is in the grip of a serial killer who is characterized by leaving the number 13 on the victims. When security guard John Denton (Marc Hustvedt) stops by to replace a broken chip on a security camera, Sera soon turns to him to express her dismay at Andrew’s still-present.

In ‘Th13teen’ a lot of attention is paid to religion. This theme should somehow bridge the gap between the very religious John and Sera who works with children suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome. This bridge must then consist of the ballast that you take with you from your personal past and the mercy that underlies Christianity. An interesting idea, but not executed well at all. The film barely gets off the ground. Although the psychological games between Andrew and John are nice, the level of the plot is just below par. The lack of realism breaks the film. In addition, the plot twist, which could not be avoided, adds nothing to the story at all. Unfortunately, most of the acting is also very below par, especially Amanda Brown has a hard time dealing with facial expressions. And John Lansch does have something of a creep, but he too can’t convince in showing a variety of emotions.

‘Th13teen’ is described as a thrilling thriller but fails to impress in any way. Quickly forgotten!