Paranormal researcher Dr. Markway (Richard Johnson) gathers three people to stay with him at Hill House, an old mansion with a deadly history. He hopes the reputedly haunted house can provide evidence of the paranormal. The three others in his group are Luke (Russ Tamblyn), an heir of the woman who owns the house, psychic Theodora (Claire Bloom), and Eleanor (Julie Harris), a troubled woman who experienced poltergeist activity as a child. It doesn't take long before strange things start to happen in the house and it seems to affect Eleanor most of all.
Robert Wise's adaptation of Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting of Hill House" is a bona fide horror classic that's influenced countless movies over the years. Wise was a director who proved he could excel at any genre he tackled. His first horror movies were when he worked with Val Lewton on some of his wonderful films from the '40s. Lewton's approach to horror was to leave a lot to the viewer's imagination. Show them just enough to get their wheels spinning but never enough to say definitively that the horrors were real and not just in the mind. This ambiguous approach that focused heavily on the psychological clearly influenced Wise's direction here. So many of the scares here are suggested rather than overt.
The film benefits from a small cast. Richard Johnson is a solid actor who gives what could easily be a stuffy character some personality. His opening narration sends chills down your spine. Russ Tamblyn is the flippant young man foisted upon Johnson's team. He has a memorable final line. Claire Bloom is terrific as the spiciest character in the film, subtext-laden Theodora. Julie Harris is the one that seems to divide viewers most. Some, like myself, find her performance as the nervous, frightened, and unbalanced Eleanor very authentic and deserving of praise. Others have said she's over the top, unrelatable, and hard to like. You'll have to see it and judge for yourself. The real star of the film is the house itself. The exteriors were shot at Ettington Hall and the interiors were very believable sets created by Elliott Scott.
After skimming through the reviews here, I was disappointed to see so many negatives. Most of which were the same: too boring, too slow, etc. I hate to generalize and I hate to play the "what's wrong with today's generation" card...but man it depresses me a little. I guess that's what happens when kids grow up plopped down in front of a TV or computer screen from an early age. Everything has to be shocking and violent. Like all the great horror films (not just cheap slasher dreck), it's best watched late at night. There's much to appreciate about this (pardon the pun) haunting classic. The script, acting, score, cinematography, and direction are all superb. It's a truly frightening film at times with an uneasy atmosphere throughout. A film that everybody should see at least once.
Robert Wise's adaptation of Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting of Hill House" is a bona fide horror classic that's influenced countless movies over the years. Wise was a director who proved he could excel at any genre he tackled. His first horror movies were when he worked with Val Lewton on some of his wonderful films from the '40s. Lewton's approach to horror was to leave a lot to the viewer's imagination. Show them just enough to get their wheels spinning but never enough to say definitively that the horrors were real and not just in the mind. This ambiguous approach that focused heavily on the psychological clearly influenced Wise's direction here. So many of the scares here are suggested rather than overt.
The film benefits from a small cast. Richard Johnson is a solid actor who gives what could easily be a stuffy character some personality. His opening narration sends chills down your spine. Russ Tamblyn is the flippant young man foisted upon Johnson's team. He has a memorable final line. Claire Bloom is terrific as the spiciest character in the film, subtext-laden Theodora. Julie Harris is the one that seems to divide viewers most. Some, like myself, find her performance as the nervous, frightened, and unbalanced Eleanor very authentic and deserving of praise. Others have said she's over the top, unrelatable, and hard to like. You'll have to see it and judge for yourself. The real star of the film is the house itself. The exteriors were shot at Ettington Hall and the interiors were very believable sets created by Elliott Scott.
After skimming through the reviews here, I was disappointed to see so many negatives. Most of which were the same: too boring, too slow, etc. I hate to generalize and I hate to play the "what's wrong with today's generation" card...but man it depresses me a little. I guess that's what happens when kids grow up plopped down in front of a TV or computer screen from an early age. Everything has to be shocking and violent. Like all the great horror films (not just cheap slasher dreck), it's best watched late at night. There's much to appreciate about this (pardon the pun) haunting classic. The script, acting, score, cinematography, and direction are all superb. It's a truly frightening film at times with an uneasy atmosphere throughout. A film that everybody should see at least once.