Only cast of 'Forgotten' makes film memorable

The intensity of the story is kept up for a while, but there's a letdown.
By BETSY PICKLE
SCRIPPS HOWARD
Most moviegoers first noticed Julianne Moore 12 years ago when she played Annabella Sciorra's too-smart-for-her-own-good best friend in the thriller "The Hand That Rocks the Cradle."
Almost a year earlier, director Joseph Ruben had his biggest box-office success with the Julia Roberts thriller "Sleeping With the Enemy."
Julianne, Julia, thriller, thriller -- coincidence? There's no such thing, as the bleak-looking new thriller "The Forgotten" -- starring Moore and directed by Ruben -- likes to point out whenever possible.
In "The Forgotten," Brooklyn free-lance editor Telly (Moore) still pines inconsolably for her young son, Sam (Christopher Kovaleski), who died in a plane crash along with five other children 14 months before the film's story starts. Or so Telly believes.
No evidence
It turns out that Telly's financier husband, Jim (Anthony Edwards), and her psychiatrist, Dr. Munce (Gary Sinise), have been waiting for her to realize that she never had a son, that she invented Sam and nine years' worth of memories of him. There's nothing to show that Sam ever existed except for Telly's unshakable love and unending grief.
There's one person who might be able to prove Telly is not insane. Retired hockey player Ash (Dominic West) lost his daughter in the crash, yet when Telly turns to him he doesn't remember having had a daughter. Telly's wispy evidence stirs his memories, and Ash comes to Telly's rescue as she's being hauled off by tight-lipped federal agents.
Telly and Ash try to evade the feds while they figure out what really happened to their children, why anyone would want to erase memories of their kids and who would have the power to do so.
Meanwhile, Telly bonds by phone with Anne Pope (Alfre Woodard), a police detective who smells something fishy in the feds' involvement; and a mysterious friendly man (Linus Roache) keeps tabs on Telly and Ash.
The good and bad
Gerald DiPego's script is aimed at the paranoid, but its is-she-or-isn't-she-crazy atmosphere too soon gives way to formulaic car and foot chases and oodles of shattered glass. It holds to the same philosophy as "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," with maternal bonding instead of a romantic connection.
Ruben has made his share of thrillers, some good ("The Stepfather"), some not so good ("The Good Son"). He's also done science fiction ("Dreamscape") and action ("Money Train"), elements that come into play in "The Forgotten."
While he keeps up the intensity for a time, the third-act reveal isn't much of a surprise, and there's a letdown that might not have been as palpable if the script had been more of a head-trip.
The cast keeps the film from being easily dismissed. Moore is viscerally convincing as the distraught mother, and West, Sinise, Woodard, Edwards and Roache forge strong imprints with subtle touches. They make "The Forgotten" more memorable than it would be otherwise.