A young nurse, Kathy Jacquard (Sharn Vinson from YOU'RE NEXT), applies and is accepted to work with brilliant doctor Roget (GAME OF THRONES' Charles Dance) after a staff nurse goes missing. The good Doc performs cutting edge treatment on comatose patients in a remote, dilapidated nunnery turned psychiatric clinic. Suffering from an acute case of what have you done for me lately, the Doc's financial backers are pressuring him to produce the next big breakthrough or they'll pull the plug on his operation.
Kathy works alongside nurse Williams (Peta Sergeant from IRON SKY) under the supervision of the Doc's cold as ice daughter Matron Cassidy (Rachel Griffiths). Kathy quickly takes to coma patient Patrick who communicates with her alone by spitting to answer yes / no questions. She tries to convince the Doc and the Matron that Patrick isn't brain dead but they are having none of it and seem to be more interested in guarding secrets. Slowly, Kathy unravels the secrets of the clinic as Patrick reveals more of his power and twisted love.
There's a romantic subplot involving Kathy, her ex and a new potential beau but what was going on confused me to the point where I was left wondering if large chunks of it were hacked away to shorten the run time. And that may have been done because at 96 minutes not much happens until the finale. The film is closer to a no burn rather than a slow burn. Which is odd considering that director Mark Hartley created the wonderful documentary NOT QUITE HOLLYWOOD: THE WILD, UNTOLD STORY OF OZPLOITATION, and pays homage to Richard Franklin's original film of which this is a remake. He should know better than to make such a pedestrian film. Director Mario Landi at least sleazed up his PATRICK rip-off, PATRICK STILL LIVES.
** out of ****
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