photo: Kiefer Sutherland and Amy Smart

The press breakfast for Alexandre Aja’s new horror film Mirrors seemed a bit like an elaborate practical joke. Feed the press a tasty meal, give them access to Aja and stars Kiefer Sutherland and Amy Smart, then attempt to make them lose said meal by showing clips of Amy Smart ripping her own face off.

They showed five clips in all. The first was the opening scene of the film: a night watchmen in a ridiculously creepy department store is frantically trying to escape. From what, we do not know. Eventually several mirrors turn toward him, he begins to cry, and his sinister reflection then cuts its own throat, thereby cutting the real mans throat as well. The terrifying power of mirrors are revealed. Sutherland later explained that his character, a disgraced alcoholic former police officer, gets the night watchmen job after this initial death.

The other clips varied between character development scenes and spooks. Sutherland said his interest in the script came from the fact that it’s a character driven drama, as well as a supernatural slasher. He said, “Without any of the horror elements, it’s still a strong family drama.” It’s hard to say whether this will turn out to be a genuine quality of the film, or if it’s just lip service to avoid simply saying, “The movie is about mirrors killing people, enjoy your free breakfast, goodbye.”

After the jump, what keeps Aja going (hint: it’s gross)…

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