‘The Haunting’

“And whatever walked there … walked alone.” So begins Robert Wise’s creepy 1963 film adaptation of Shirley Jackson’s “The Haunting of Hill House” (beware the awful 1999 remake). No “Saw”-like contraptions or buckets of gore here. It’s simply the tale of a group of people (with Julie Harris a standout) staying in a haunted New England house with some very unsettling results. All filmed in glorious black and white. For maximum effect, watch it at night, with the drapes closed … and the doors locked.

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“During afternoon tea, there’s a shift in the air…”

I’ve discussed scary movies before (here and there), so how great to see a trailer for what looks to be a very creepy film adaptation of “The Woman in Black” coming next February.

I’ve seen the 1989 original (check it out if you can find a copy), and seen the stage adaptation a couple of times and just love the chilling web this story spins.

Daniel Radcliffe looks great, there is mood to spare and not too much of the story is given away. Oh, and thanks to my co-worker Moira for alerting me to this. Her “Popcorn & Prejudice” blog is great. Check it out.

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Scary movies

‘Tis the season for talk of scary movies. Everyone has their favorites, or course. New or old? Bloody or creepy?

I was at a Halloween party over the weekend where the subject came up (“The Dead Zone” and “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” were mentioned), other titles were mentioned at work (“The Innocents” and “The Orphanage”), and I did a post last year (“Post #13”) where I listed some of my favorites.

Since I’m always in search of a new scary movie, I went and saw “Let Me In” over the weekend. It’s the remake of the great Swedish horror film, “Let the Right One In.” Capably directed and adapted by Matt Reeves, and reset in the American southwest, it has two great performances by the young leads (Kodi Smit-McPhee and Chloe Moretz). The visual effects were a little too much (“Hey, look what we can do”), more needed to be left to the imagination. I still liked it, though.

Chloe Moretz in "Let Me In"

"Let the Right One In"

 

 

Hope you all have a great Halloween!

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Post #13

Claire Bloom, left, and Julie Harris in 1963's "The Haunting."

BWAH HA HA! Did I scare ya? No? O.K. I’m not superstitious about the number 13, just making an observation.

The murder mystery went off Friday night without too much hassle. Not a big fan of the improv.

Lots of talk at work about scary movies. Two of my favorites are (the original versions of) “Halloween” and “The Haunting.” Both pack a lot of scare without much gore. I also enjoyed “The Others” (2001) starring Nicole Kidman. Great, spooky stuff.

Halloween is coming, so is my trip to Canada. More soon.

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