Not perfect, but could've been much worse. I like Thora Birch and how she's always cast to play odd, eccentric (and, in this case, dark, twisted and sinister) characters. It suits her and she does it well. However, in this movie, her performance was weaker compared to other movies I've seen her in.A half-decent psychological thriller despite the fact that not a lot of people will probably be able to relate to any of the characters, which somewhat lowers the entertainment value. Plus the relatively implausible plot. These are probably the 2 main weaknesses of this movie.Nevertheless, I thought it wasn't a bad film, though they could've done a better job on building the suspense...

I managed to find this movie on Netflix streaming movies. The initial premise is simple, two guys and two girls skip out on a end- of-term field trip to spend 3 days "camping" in an old emergency shelter, underground with a metal door that opens up on a hillside in the woods. Basically a place few would know about and not likely stumble upon.But something goes very wrong. As the movie progresses initially and one of the girls makes her way to safety, and is explaining to a psychiatrist what happened, we see that dramatized. But is that what really happened, or do we have a case of 'unreliable narrator'? While this isn't a great movie is did hold my interest, I had no idea what would develop. I also like the actors, especially the two female leads, Thora Birch as Liz Dunn and Keira Knightley as 'Frankie'. In fact this is the role where at 15 during filming she flashed her breasts for a second, an act which has created at least a bit of controversy on the discussion board. But it was quick and innocent.SPOILERS: The first story we see, which is not accurate, has the four being locked by another boy in the secluded shelter then failing to show up 3 days later as agreed. But in fact he was a scapegoat, it was all a plan of Liz's to get a cute boy to like her, and when things went wrong each of the others died one at a time. All for the silliness of trying to get attention. To cover her tracks she put the shelter key in the other boy's pocket, pushed him into a stream, he was found dead with the key. They assumed suicide from guilt. Liz, the teenage psychopath, got off.

This was a well thought out and well executed movie. At first blush, the concept of 4 bratty teens stuck in a bunker seems awful, but the reality is quite the opposite!Said 4 snotty - er, bratty - teens are keen to avoid a school trip (how droll!), and end up seeking shelter from monotony in an old bunker. It is once they are unable to get out that things get interesting, straining, and much less enjoyable than a schoolyard trip!Good acting and camera work stops it from being tedious - the relationships and character development make it a thrilling movie. It is a great movie that is definitely worth your time, and I'd highly recommend.

I have seen very few good horror or suspense flicks lately. I am beginning to think that almost no one is making such films these days."The Hole" is billed a thriller/horror flick. It is not. It could have been a drama or character study, if the writer had more ability. The cast is misused, as the dialog ranges from mediocre to downright poor.The unreliable narrator aspect, as other reviewers have mentioned (Kurosawa would NOT be pleased, as this flick takes the plot device and makes a muddled over long film a bit longer and more muddled) is no help.Spoilers follow. Thora Birch and Knightly actually are decent performers. This script does no one here any favors, certainly not them. The increasingly psychotic girlfriend or wife has been done much better, by abler writers and directors. For a better movie with a similar theme, watch "Presumed Innocent", or "Shattered" from 1991. Don't waste time with this.