Perception (2005) Online

The main character, Jen, played by Piper Perabo, is a typical manipulative and spoiled pretty girl, who meets with a freak accident and is then wheelchair-bound, not able to use her legs and one of her arms. The same people who were hot for her, her old boyfriend, her current girlfriend, and a flirty cop (Seth Myers, Mary Beth Burns, and Nick Scotto, respectively) just aren't the same and begin to avoid her.

With the death of her father (that she thinks she could have prevented had she been 'whole',)Jen resolves to get better and does. Once healthy again, Jen's life only seems to get worse. All her troubles come to a head in a bizarre chain of events that finds her mother dead (suicide) and her girlfriend involved in a killing. This seems to push Jen over the edge and she makes a fatal (or was it?) decision, and the movie ends.

We learn throughout the picture that Jen herself is a little kookie. And she refuses to see a shrink. So when trouble comes, she is unable to handle it. No line of the plot went anywhere positive, but to lead a puzzling and convoluted ending that leaves open to question what actually occurred.

This should have been a tour-de-force for Piper Perabo, who is in virtually every scene. Perabo does do a credible job, but has no material to work with here. The five stars are for Perabo's performance. It will not be recognized, though, because the movie is just uninspiring.

Irving Schwartz, lighten up! As writer and director of this strange little movie he seems to have a weird perception of the world himself. There is a limit to the punishingly sad story lines that can make it to film and this one clearly falls into that category.

Jen (Piper Perabo) is a funky, grossly outfitted bleach blond who has returned home from Los Angles to care for her emotionally disturbed parents (Mark Dobies and Mary Beth Hurt) but she seems to outdo any manifestation of their mental abnormalities. She is stuck in a meaningless relationship with a female animal activist (Heather Burns) and trying to stave off her ex-boyfriend (Seth Meyers) while walking among friends like Aunjanue Ellis, a druggie, Ajay Naidu, a Pakistani importer, and a cop Nick Scotti. She is struck by a truck and becomes paralyzed and seems to want to get a grip on her life, but her 'friends' don't go along. To say more would waste what little interest there is to glean from this tale.

Those who have followed Piper Perabo's career may be hoping that this starring role may offer her the chance for a jump-start. Sadly the script and atmosphere are so lacking that this film is probably one she will choose to not list on her resume. Grady Harp

To begin with, the script is an amateur attempt at a movie. The directing is a bit stiff and mediocre. The attempt at a mystery ending fails lamely.

The production is poorly done, especially the audio which frequently over-peaks and causes voice distortion especially during outdoor verbal interactions. There is constant background "music" which amounts to pretty much noise and annoyance. Most of the dialog is fraught with echo from poorly placed audio microphones.

If the plot was at all intriguing or with proper development, this movie might have been fair to tolerable. But unfortunately for one of my favorites, Piper Perabo, the effort fails miserably.