I can't imagine being scared by this movie.. and isn't that what "horror films" are about? You have two obnoxious children, a repressed governess (played by an actress who is much older then the character she plays)a gloomy house and a lot of dark photography with dramatic lighting.
That's about the whole story. The children are snotty bores, the governess I think was hitting the bottle when we weren't watching, the sweet old housekeeper has bugs in her bonnet, and the house only has 3 rooms that we see... despite it being as big as Windsor Castle.
I watched the entire thing - in the letterbox version - and kept hoping it would get better. It never did. It was almost a relief when the kid dies in the end, if he ever grew up he'd be intolerable. When the movie started out - it appeared it might be good - much to my disappointment it quickly deteriorated into a turgid senseless mess.
I know the fans are going to say this isn't a helpful review, but perhaps one or two people will be saved having to sit through this mess. Or not.. if you want to see a vastly overrated mess, have at it.. you can't say YOU WEREN'T WARNED! (Nurse is in the lobby with coffee to help you wake up if you fall asleep during the screening of this feature..)
I'd suggest you rent/Netflix/whatever the original "The Haunting" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057129/ one of several movies/miniseries about the same evil house.. THAT movie is genuinely scary and has two wonderful performances in it (Julie Harris and Claire Bloom..)
That's about the whole story. The children are snotty bores, the governess I think was hitting the bottle when we weren't watching, the sweet old housekeeper has bugs in her bonnet, and the house only has 3 rooms that we see... despite it being as big as Windsor Castle.
I watched the entire thing - in the letterbox version - and kept hoping it would get better. It never did. It was almost a relief when the kid dies in the end, if he ever grew up he'd be intolerable. When the movie started out - it appeared it might be good - much to my disappointment it quickly deteriorated into a turgid senseless mess.
I know the fans are going to say this isn't a helpful review, but perhaps one or two people will be saved having to sit through this mess. Or not.. if you want to see a vastly overrated mess, have at it.. you can't say YOU WEREN'T WARNED! (Nurse is in the lobby with coffee to help you wake up if you fall asleep during the screening of this feature..)
I'd suggest you rent/Netflix/whatever the original "The Haunting" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057129/ one of several movies/miniseries about the same evil house.. THAT movie is genuinely scary and has two wonderful performances in it (Julie Harris and Claire Bloom..)