Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.5

6 Souls Blu-ray Movie Review

Identity crisis.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman June 30, 2013

There may not be a more confused movie released this year than 6 Souls, a picture that's sometimes oddly alluring and very well acted but also structurally messy, thematically confused, overlong, underdeveloped, and sometimes downright tedious to watch, all while swapping genres with, seemingly, every act. Renamed the more direct-to-video-ish sounding 6 Souls from the original, arguably better title Shelter, the film was shelved for around half a decade after filming before finally seeing the light of day in limited release and, then, to video. Directed by the duo of Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein (Underworld: Awakening) and written by Michael Cooney (Identity, 1997's Jack Frost), the film toys with a few decent ideas but scrambles itself far too much to find either structural coherence or meaningful drama.

There's something about this guy...

Psychiatrist Cara Harding (Julianne Moore, Blindness) receives a phone call from her father (Jeffrey DeMunn, The Walking Dead) about a new patient that might pique her interest. Before long, she's seated across the table from David Bernburg (Jonathan Rhys Meyers, August Rush), a wheelchair-bound young man who seems otherwise healthy and normal. However, a sudden phone call changes everything. He suddenly becomes Adam, a more aggressive individual with altered physical characteristics -- such as eyesight quality -- that could not manifest so quickly in or on the whim of the individual. Cara, intrigued by the case, digs into her patient's past and slowly pieces together the sobering reality that everything about him is a lie. She uncovers a series of terrible truths that lead her to a startling conclusion and a reality that could threaten all that she loves.

6 Souls begins well enough but slowly descends into murkier, less interesting, and far more dramatically hollow and cinematically stereotypical territory the more it inches towards the end. The unfolding story of a victim of multiple personalities proves mentally stimulating and, if not quite unique, at least an area of cinema exploration that hasn't been overworked. Even the early stages of the investigation into the split personality -- the quest to unearth where the different people came from, why they're all seemingly sharing the same body, and the connections to both the living and dead -- shape a fairly intense and occasionally chilling portrait of a man lost and a woman going beyond the call of duty to find the truth. Unfortunately, the further she digs the more convoluted the story becomes until it drifts away from its brisk and well-constructed psychological Chiller beginnings and towards a Religiously themed Horror/Thriller picture that stretches the limits of the story's credibility and betrays the smarter first half by over-complicating matters. It's as if the film couldn't be content to explore a more fundamentally sound narrative and felt the need to expand into the supernatural to compensate for something that needed no compensation. Instead of remaining a tight, smart psychological Drama, the film devolves into an everyday modern Horror film with delusions of thematic significance and catchy style that just aren't there.

On the plus side, that first act is really quite strong, and the acting is of high caliber throughout. Jonathan Rhys Meyers is a standout playing several unique characters that require a broad range and, often, a drastic tonal shift within the same scene. Meyers brings all of his personalities to life, quite vividly, even, and despite the rather jumbled script. Julianne Moore doesn't look or sound out of place, but 6 Souls isn't the sort of movie that really brings her best to the camera. Like Meyers, she turns in a quality performance, not so engaging as Meyers' but certainly pushing the character as far as the script allows, blending some quality scenes that demand a combination of her character's professional and personal characteristics, notably in the film's generically chilling final shot. The film is supported by a good cast of secondary players; Jeffrey DeMunn and Frances Conroy are superb as parents whose lives are forever altered by the film's events. Technically, 6 Souls often looks quite spiffy, but it's a bit more style than substance. The filmmakers do what they can to support and sometimes supplant the plot, but ultimately it's that bumbling second act and rather ridiculous third that are the film's undoing.

6 Souls Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

6 Souls does at least look quite nice on Blu-ray. Anchor Bay's high definition presentation features an oftentimes gorgeous film-like texture. Details are consistently sharp and pleasing to the eye. Facial textures are naturally complex and produce the finest facial hairs, freckles, and pores with no effort. Clothing lines are strong, and the clarity and precision with which rusty city elements or rustic and run down country details appear only aids in the impression that this is a standout transfer. Colors are very good, though there's a darkness and bleakness to much of the picture. Blacks are deep and show only a hint of crush, while flesh tones are natural. Very light banding interferes with a couple of shots, but there's otherwise little room for complaint. This is a very good-looking transfer from Anchor Bay.

6 Souls Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

6 Souls features a robust and well-engineered DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. It opens strongly, with a wide, well-defined musical presence. It's the typical Horror-styled theme with deep and dark lows and stringy highs, but the clarity and placement of the presentation -- which includes a generous but not overdone surround support -- makes the rather generic tone almost enjoyable. There's also a strong, quality balance to ambient elements. Gentle rainfall and rustling papers in the wind both play with unmistakably natural quality and precise placement within the stage. The elements flow through very well, with some well-placed discrete effects adding another layer of sonic depth and accuracy. A few heavier effects are handled with the same sort of clarity and attention to detail. Dialogue is firm and flows evenly from the center. A job well done by Anchor Bay.

6 Souls Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

6 Souls contains no supplemental content.

6 Souls Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

There's certainly far worse out there in the cinema wild than 6 Souls, but it's exactly the sort of film destined to be forgotten rather quickly. Decent establishing story ideas and professional acting can't save it from a slow descent into the nonsensical in the second and third acts. The name change and the lengthy time between its 2008 shoot and 2013 release should say pretty much everything viewers need to know going in. Anchor Bay's Blu-ray release of 6 Souls does offer solid video and audio. No extras are included. Don't bother.