Reviewed by: Greg Mueller

Greg's Score:
3.75

Plot/Story

5

Characters

4

Acting

4

Cinematography

6

Production Design

2

Soundtrack

5

Execution

3

Emotional Impact

1


Review:

I remember watching this on VHS as a kid and I remembered exactly two things, "Eleanor, help me. I gotta pee!" and the piano scene. As an adult, while those bits are still very memorable, I'm much more concerned with the many plot holes, bad acting, and terrible CG. The Haunting is full of issues that would be easy to fix if anyone was paying attention. Firstly, Eleanor, Theo and the others are there under the ruse that they are reporting to Hill House for a sleep study and the doctor is constantly off-highhandedly telling people that "they just need some rest" or to just go to sleep. Well duh! They all have insomnia; if they could just go fall asleep, they wouldn't be at your sleep study. They literally can't just go up to their room and fall asleep! Very quickly, one character has to be taken to a medical facility and the doctor sends one of the sleep study volunteers out to take her. He gives the guy the key to the gate to open it when her gets back, but he's never heard from or mentioned again. It's been well over a day and he's not back from the quick trip to drop her off at the hospital? Why isn't anyone concerned? Was it just to make the gate key disappear? Why not just, you know, not have anyone in the house have a key? The caretakers lock the gate when they leave before nightfall, why does there have to be another key? The movie is just full of stupid little issues that have to be a result of neglect. The acting isn't much better: Liam Neeson is half asleep, Catherine Zeta-Jones is a caricature of a slutty sorority girl, Owen Wilson is.....Owen Wilson, and Lili Taylor runs out of steam really quick and gets progressively worse. Above all of these things, I think the CGI is what most people are going to notice. Even in 1999 the effects felt dated; they look like they are lifted from a PlayStation One game. By the time the titular haunting is in full swing, we are constantly getting CG. Where did $80 million budget go? There are much worse movies out there for sure, but The Haunting doesn't offer much in the way of horror, or excitement, or even fun kills. There is some enjoyment to be had at the film's expense, but none of it is intentional. It's an easy pass.

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