For anyone expecting a classic Robert DeNiro performance on par with Goodfellas or Raging Bull, you'll be sadly disappointed with Hide & Seek. This story centers around a 9-year-old girl named Emily Callaway, played by Dakota Fanning, who relocates to the North Country after her mother dies in Manhattan. Her father, David Callaway, played by DeNiro, is a firm believer that relocating to upstate New York will help Emily overcome her mother's death; however, once Emily arrives, she soon makes a mysterious imaginary friend named Charlie.

Emily's games start off innocently enough, but they turn sinister as Charlie destroys Emily's dolls and drowns the family cat. We, as the audience, are left to ponder who Charlie could possibly be or what is causing these horrific occurrences. Could it be the creepy next-door neighbor, played by Robert John Burke who lost his own child to cancer years ago? Or is it the local sheriff, played by Dylan Baker who, for some reason, has a key to the house?

This film is full of potential, which is wasted by an uninspired cast. DeNiro moves around the screen almost as if he's there to pick up the paycheck and contributes little else. Young Fanning has livened up many pictures in the past with her bubbly persona, such as Man on Fire and I Am Sam, but here, she sulks around with such a contrived gloominess that it makes her role of a tortured little girl hard to believe.

The casting in Hide & Seek is quite odd. DeNiro, who was 61 at the time this was filmed, looks far too old to be Dakota Fanning's father, and Amy Irving at 51, fares no better. To throw another wrench into the works, Elisabeth Shue comes into the picture after the death of Irving's character as David's romantic interest. She and DeNiro have almost no chemistry to speak of, as the 20-year age difference keeps them from developing any. Her attempts to charm Emily come off as a farce and her presence bogs the picture down.

The director attempts to bombard the audience with multiple red herrings, most of which serve to muddle the overall picture that much more. The grieving neighbor, the weird realtor, and a creepy child psychologist all take their turns trying to confuse the audience, and succeed for the most part. The movie also suffers from a bout of derivatives, attempting to tread on what older movies such as Rosemary's Baby and The Shining have done well to get a shock out of the viewer. Similar camera tricks and shock tactics are employed, but to no avail.

All in all, the movie is not all bad, but it's not very well done either. Fanning gives it her best shot, which is more than can be said for the rest of the cast, DeNiro included. If you're in the mood for a moderate film with a twist ending that may (but probably won't) shock you, this is the flick for you.

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