THE HAUNTING, an inspiration for Sam Raimi's EVIL DEAD films, NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, and a really, really crappy 1999 remake, is a moderately entertaining horror flick with some suspenseful set pieces and some really interesting characters. There are some good scares relying on sound and lighting which are excellent, and a surreal scene with a breathing wall (a great effect). But the house in this film never registers as an evil force, we just hear people talk about how it is an evil force.
We're forced to spend most of the running time watching the unlikable lead Eleanor (Julie Harris). Nell is a twisty-faced, mother-obsessed whiner who worries on and on in endless voiceovers. The most likable character is sexy, fashionable, and wry Theo (Claire Bloom), a psychic whose lesbianism is handled in a sly, intelligent, and funny manner- definitely not what I expected from a horror movie in 1963. The double-entendre-laden dialog is squirmingly droll. The rest of the wry cast contains a bland doctor (Dick Johnson) and the eternally wise-cracking Luke (Russ Tamblyn, who has one weird filmography), who has some good lines but seems to be in the movie for no reason. Ms. Moneypenny also shows up in an annoying role.
Recommended.
We're forced to spend most of the running time watching the unlikable lead Eleanor (Julie Harris). Nell is a twisty-faced, mother-obsessed whiner who worries on and on in endless voiceovers. The most likable character is sexy, fashionable, and wry Theo (Claire Bloom), a psychic whose lesbianism is handled in a sly, intelligent, and funny manner- definitely not what I expected from a horror movie in 1963. The double-entendre-laden dialog is squirmingly droll. The rest of the wry cast contains a bland doctor (Dick Johnson) and the eternally wise-cracking Luke (Russ Tamblyn, who has one weird filmography), who has some good lines but seems to be in the movie for no reason. Ms. Moneypenny also shows up in an annoying role.
Recommended.