Dr. David Marrow invites Nell Vance, and Theo and Luke Sanderson to the eerie and isolated Hill House to be subjects for a sleep disorder study. The unfortunate guests discover that Marrow is far m...
The Haunting may have spooked the visual effects department. "The special effects will leave you terrified". Umm yeah, it sure did! That budget was off the chain! $80,000,000!? Granted they've aged beautifully like a fine ghostly wine and actually give this remake some charm, but talk about over-visualisation. So, I've yet to watch the original which I've heard is a vastly superior horror film. After seeing this, I probably would agree as this is an absolute failure in terms of horror. However, viewing it as a mystery is a different story, and I slowly became invested in the legend of Hill House. Participants who suffer from insomnia take part in an experiment by being isolated in a luscious mansion that turns out to be haunted. Utilising a psychological perspective to masquerade the hauntings that occur has been done before, therefore this remake offers nothing new. In fact, it's fairly generic. Offering zero scares, no suspense and limited thrills. The acting was fine although laughably horrific occasionally, particularly from Owen "Wow" Wilson (I counted five times!) who looks utterly out of place. The high quality visual effects, as astounding as they are, diminish the integrity of the story. It really is more (cue Wilson voice) "Wow! Look at that ghostly mirror!" instead of "Wow! I'm so invested in this story, what's going to happen next?". The ending was predictably underwhelming and the sense of familiarity eclipsed the gorgeous production design. The mansion's interior design had a character of its own, exuding grandeur and regality. Forget about Neeson and Zeta-Jones, Hill House is the most investable "character" in the entire film. Strangely though, the story's mystery kept me intrigued (despite watching 'Scary Movie 2'), with each room hosting an array of clues regarding the owner's fate. It atleast made the film watchable. The Haunting may not contain anything remotely scary or exciting, but the technical aspects may keep you intrigued if you haven't watched the original. I don't know about you, but I automatically thought of Disney's 'Haunted Mansion' whilst watching this.
