“Mindgame” is a nice little thriller that plays out like an episode of “Tales from the Crypt”, only without the cheese factor. It has some plot twists that you can see coming but since the film isn’t totally dependent on them (like ‘The Village’), that doesn’t matter.
Sara (April Adamson) has a psychic ability that allows her to pinpoint when and where someone is going to die. Her husband Ray (S. Greg Gardner) sees this skill as a gift, so he coaxes the soon-to-be victims into paying cash for this information so they can prevent these events from happening. Sara has a real problem with this and she doesn’t want to do it anymore, but Ray convinces her to do it just once more. He promises that this one will be a big payoff and they will be home free. With any “one last, big score” problems and/or complications always occur, and “Mindgame” is no exception.
An ironic element of the story deals with Ray and his affair with another woman. This really is a perfect way to demonstrate how small-minded this character is. He shows that he can mastermind some near perfect plans to gather up cash but he seems to misplace his intelligence for everything else. Let’s just say for a second that you had a psychic spouse, would you cheat on them? Wouldn’t you think they would find out?
Things like that make this film work so well. Jamie Neese Midnight continues to shine as a comfortable director for actors. April Adamson gives an exceptional performance as do the others. The visual style is also something to note. The camera work follows the action and mood nicely without getting too handheld or shaky. Take these elements together and “Mindgame” mixes into a nice enjoyable thriller.
