Ropey remake dies on its feet

mentioned in the same breath as Roberts and Bacon.

However, either way, they are badly let down by perfunctory directing from Dane Neils Arden Oplev, who follows up his fine work on the original The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo with another mediocre English language flick after 2013’s forgettable Dead Man Down.

The script is full of predictable developments which could have been compensated for by vibrant visuals, spooky sound design and electric editing.

Sadly Oplev and his behind-the-camera team fail to elevate the familiar goings-on and while Flatliners 1990 knew its limitations and opted for scares over science, this reboot takes itself far too seriously and bombards us with religious themes and imagery that made me wonder if Oplev had taken inspiration from Mel Gibson’s climax to Hacksaw Ridge.

In what feels like little more than stunt casting and an ineffective effort to tie in events with the original, Sutherland returns but is given so little to work with he could have literally phoned in his performance.

The reboot’s biggest flaw, though? It’s just not scary. At all. There aren’t even any notable jump scares, which even some of the worst horror movies released in the last decade have utilised to evoke at least mild discomfort.

As a result, this has to go down as another disappointment to add to the ever-growing pile of inferior horror remakes.

While not as downright awful as the Prom Night, Wicker Man and Psycho re-do’s, Flatliners 2017 has all the life sucked out of it.