Working-class Bostonians Phil and Gordon makes a bid on removing asbestos from an enormous abandoned mental hospital, they win the bid and are supposed to finish the job within a week. Together with a three other guys, the crew start what was supposed to be a straightforward job, but soon things get in their way as the mental hospital is closing in on them. All the guys has their own personal problems to deal with, and at the same time one of the team members named Mike stumbles upon session tapes of a girl with multiple personalities, with her third personality being something that's pure evil.
Session 9 is one of those kinda rare horror movies that stays with you for a while after that it's over. When watching it, the film certainly has a creepy feel to it, but afterwards, when thinking about the characters and putting things together, that same creepy feel found in the movie is still there with you. There are not too many horror flick that succeed with delivering this so-called after effect, so it's of course always a great thing when it happens. This is not a movie for those looking for cheap sudden scares, or a fast pace for that matter. Not that the movie's slow really, but it takes its time, creeping under your skin and delivers psychological fear instead of fast shocks and sudden scares.
It takes its time for things to build up and the scary moments have some distance between them. Still though, the movie has this eerieness to it that comes early on in the movie and that is quite hard to shake off. Even when there are just these pure drama scenes in broad daylight, the eerieness is still there, waiting patiently in the background, ready to strike again and again. First time I watched Session 9 when the movie first was released, I have to admit that it freaked me out for a little while. I can't say that it's extremely scary because it's really not, but if you really get into it, it will provide some genuine fear for sure. Filmed at the Danvers State Mental Hospital, this amazing monsterous building does a lot of the work for the movie on its own. It has to be seen to be believed, but imagine this abandoned mental hospital, so big that one could easily get lost there and that has a nasty history to it. Other than that, on the outside it looks quite nice, but on the inside it's old, worn-out, dusty, filled with dark rooms and so-called therapy rooms that were infact torture chambers. Other than that, it's so quiet there that you could almost hear yourself think. Yeah, it's definitely one freaky place.
 
The movie has quite good character development where we get to know a bit about each and every one. We learn that all of these men have personal problems and get to know some about that as well. Now, I'm not into flicks that explains every single little thing they have to them before they end, since that leaves no mystery and nothing to think about after that it's over. On the other hand, Session 9 might leave you with almost too many unexplained things, some that couldn't really matter less, but some things that could've been explained a bit further. This is really not a big problem though, and Session 9 is still a very enjoyable and creepy flick.
The cinematography is awesome and the acting is good as well. Best thing with the characters is that they feel very real, working-class men doing their job and at times you actually forget that your watching a movie which is a great feeling...that is, if you get into it to begin with. This is a very different kind of horror movie, there to creep you out rather than to scare you for a brief moment which you would have forgotten about ten minutes later anyway. The way it builds up is extremely good, but then if it will satisfy you in the end is of course a different story. I really liked the fact that the movie felt very calm and real, dealing with people that you might could relate more to, rather than just the usual superficial and stereotypical teens that we unfortunately have gotten so used to seeing in horror films.
Personally, I think Sesson 9 is a very good film that differs itself from the usual kind of horror films. It sure has some creepy moments, one of those in relation with the title of the movie itself. Of course the Danvers State Mental Hospital plays a huge role in the film and does a lot of work on its own, being a natural creepy place and all. Some people might dismiss Session 9 for being too slow, but personally I think it's a very nice break from the usual 'cheap scare horrors'. It's far from being a fantastic flick, but the fact that it separates itself a lot from the standard kind of horror makes it well worth watching, just for the sake of that. But of course there are many more reason for why you should watch it. Give it a try, you'll probably not regret it.
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ALTERNATIVE TITLE:
MOVIE YEAR: 2001
DIRECTOR: Brad Anderson
WRITING CREDITS: Brad Anderson, Stephen Gevedon
GENRE: Horror, Supernatural, Thriller
CAST: David Caruso, Stephen Gevedon, Josh Lucas
COUNTRY: USA
RUNTIME: 100 min
RATING: 8/10
Session 9 Website/IMDB Click here
Session 9 Trailer Click here
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