The Haunting
Directed by Jan de Bont
- horror
- thriller
- fantasy
- mystery
The story
Dr. David Marrow invites three distinct individuals to the eerie and isolated Hill House to be subjects for a sleep disorder study. The unfortunate guests discover that Marrow is far more interested in the sinister mansion itself — and they soon see the true nature of its horror.
What it’s like
Gothic excess in amber and bruised blue: cavernous stone halls, stained glass scattering coloured light across cold floors, and a mansion that seems to shift around its occupants. The camera glides and swoops through corridors in restless, digitally enhanced sweeps, with sudden lunges that make the walls feel alive. Candlelit interiors give way to fog-smothered grounds and rain-slick lawns, and the sound is a big orchestral score of swelling strings, tolling bells and abrupt silences that snap into shrieks. The pacing rises in waves: long stretches of uneasy atmosphere broken by loud, startling scares. Its emotional core is a group of strangers fraying under sleep deprivation and suspicion in a closed space, with trust eroding room by room. Intensity is high on jump scares and spectacle: frightening imagery, peril and several deaths, but little blood and no sexual content. Best for Halloween viewing, a haunted-house mood on a stormy night, or anyone who enjoys ornate, effects-driven gothic horror and a loud, theatrical style.
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