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mtabernac
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The Truth (2014)
I can't handle The Truth!
...and you may not either. Had some interesting ideas at first, but it soon became obvious where it was heading. Not recommended at all.
Abattoir (2016)
Half of an interesting movie
I really liked the premise of this film: a mysterious person/group is purchasing houses where brutal deaths have occurred and are removing the sections of the house where the incidents happen to build their own strange structure.
Once all is revealed (the last half hour of the movie), things really kick into gear -- some great effects, cinematography, thrills, chills, etc. -- and reminds me a bit of some classics like "13 Ghosts" or "House on Haunted Hill." I found these parts very original and inventive.
Unfortunately, getting to this point is a bit tedious. The film relies on exposition supplied by characters' dialogue, and the result is that the middle half of the film seems to be missing a plot. The tedium isn't helped by some stilted dialogue and a pretty bad performance by the lead actress.
Also, the production design choices are a little confusing. The director is obviously trying to reference film noir tropes, but does this by throwing in some incongruous touches such as the costume/makeup of the main character, the car she drives and the odd idiomatic way her cop friend talks and slings back whiskey. Everything else is modern-day ,however. It just seems arbitrary and tacked on, and doesn't work. It would have been better to have just set the film in the 1950s.
If not for the ending, I would not recommend this film, but those willing to sit through the slower bits (and you have to in order to understand the ending) might find the journey worthwhile.
Curse of the Witching Tree (2015)
Resume for the Director
After watching this film, I see it less as a feature film, but more of a resume for the director, as he strives to get a job as a professional filmmaker.
This is undoubtedly a amateur/homemade production: the cast seems to outnumber the crew (with possibly some overlap) and the writer/director, James Crow, also credits himself as producer, cinematographer, editor, casting (big giveaway there) and lyric writer.
So as a resume, I say well done. You obviously have quite a bit of technical skill -- the horror scenes were generally well done and your framing wasn't bad (you didn't overdo it with the closeups, for example). I hope somebody in "the biz" notices and gives you a position as assistant or third-unit director on a future project.
As a film, however, it is less than stellar. The acting really is bad. As more than one reviewer has noted, the film is awash with over-acting (for example, the nurse warning our heroes not to get too optimistic about their father's recovery from a coma. Cringeworthy!) The lead actress isn't bad, but most of the others seem more like friends of the director than professional actors. The plot is a bit confused, and our director doesn't really help make some events less difficult to comprehend (especially the ending, as it seems blinking at the wrong time may make you miss something pivotal) . Dialogue is somewhat pointless too.
Some nicely done set pieces make some of this film watchable, but I really wouldn't recommend it as entertainment.
The Innocents (1961)
Unsettling ghost story
There appear to be only a handful of really effective ghost stories, and this is one of the best. I agree with most of what other users have said thus far, so will not repeat those remarks here. There is no on-screen depiction of a ghost that I found as disturbing and frightening as that of the motionless form of Miss Jessel far in the background on the other side of the lake. That image stayed in my mind for a very long time! I wish more "modern" ghost films would take this approach. That brief scene was much more frightening that 90 minutes of non-stop horrific special effects used in such films as Poltergeist and the remake of The Haunting.