The Haunting (1963)

Very Cool!!!

Memorable, crazy movie

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House is rightly viewed as a classic of supernatural fiction, felt by some to be the best ghost story ever written (it's certainly one of the subtlest). I've read it at least 5 times and it never loses it's power to enthrall.Robert Wise's movie version, The Haunting, is a pretty faithful adaptation, presenting its four complex central characters marvellously well. Julie Harris, Richard Johnson, Claire Bloom and Russ Tamblyn are perfect casting choices, and there is the house itself...I don't think there's ever been a better "house with a personality" in movies than the depiction of Hill House here. Director Wise had form, of course, in the genre; having previously finished off Curse of The Cat People for Val Lewton and The Body Snatcher, both of which are superb films. The "Lewton Approach" is well served here in what Stephen King once described as "The world's only radio horror movie." That famous scene, where Harris and Bloom cling to each other in sublime terror while SOMETHING pounds on the door outside is one of my favourites in all horror movies. Eleanor even laughs at one point and makes a joke, a knowing comment from Wise, perhaps, on the reaction of audiences to horror movies.The basic plot is simply this: four people spend some time in a supposedly haunted house to investigate whether there is such a thing as the supernatural, and, as one of the four begins to submit to the aura of the house, Wise always keeps a balanced view - is it really largely in Eleanor's mind? Did she write the message to herself on the wall? Or is something really there, walking alone? The travesty of a remake that was produced in 1999 is a fine illustration of how low some of Hollywood movie-making has sunk. A total CGI mess, where the original is a masterpiece. Just my opinion - but this is a truly great film. Watch it at night, in the dark...

We had a stormy weekend here so we decided to watch some films from my favorite genre...classic horror. I had picked up a TCM collection on DVD that includes a very nice sharp print of 'The Haunting' (1963). It was an okay film, I hadn't seen it in decades. Overall I was disappointed. I remembered it as being much better than it seemed to me now. Perhaps the buildup from all the positive things I've heard and read about it over the years since that last viewing had my expectations too high. I'm not saying it was a bad film, just that I didn't feel it was a great horror film.Here are some reasons I was disappointed. I usually like Julie Harris and I can see what she was trying to do here depicting a damaged, overly sheltered, woman, yet I found her character irritating and unsympathetic. I really didn't care what became of her. She acted too me much like she did as the immature young girl she played in 'The Member of the Wedding' (1952). I felt this part called for something more. I believe a more versatile actress like Deborah Kerr could have taken the character and film to a higher level. Also, there were long stretches of unnecessary and to me boring dialog between the scarce scary moments a horror film calls for. On the plus side when it was scary it did it the way I like, with atmosphere and by forcing the viewers to use their imaginations...not seeing just what is beyond that door making all the noise. I prefer this to the in-your-face gore and senseless violence of many more current horror films.For me 'The Uninvited' (1944), The Innocents (1961), 'Lady in White (1988), 'The Changeling' (1980) and 'Ghost Story' (1981) continue to be my favorite films of this type. I even liked 'The Others' from 2001 better. I realize this movie has many fans, these are simply my thoughts on it.

Eleanor is a broken women. She spent most of her adult life taking care of her sick mother, with little help from her sister. Her mother has passed away, and now Eleanor doesn't know what to do with her life. She receives no support from her sister, who argues with her, and even her niece calls her names. When Eleanor is invited by Dr. John Markway to stay in a mansion, she readily agrees. Dr. Markway studies the paranormal, and he believes Hill House to be haunted, so he invites Eleanor, along with Theodora and Luke, the current owner's nephew, to be witnesses. Eleanor, desperately wanting a friend, takes a liking to Theo. They act close at the beginning of the film, likening their relationship to that of sisters. Theo, however, is implied to be lesbian, so there may be more to their relationship than just sisterly bond. Eleanor also takes a liking to Dr. Markway because he is the only one not to make fun of her.As the film progresses, Hill House lives up to its reputation. Loud noises sound off in different rooms, there are cold spots in impossible places, and something keeps on banging on the doors. Eleanor starts to see things, but is she losing her mind, or is she being influenced by something otherworldly? Theo and Luke make fun of her, which is why Dr. Markway is nice to her.The scares are effective, the tension is constant, and there is never a moment of boredom. The acting is good, and the direction and cinematography are astounding. While watching this movie, I was amazed at Robert Wise's diversity. The only other movies I've seen of his are Born To Kill (1947), a dark and violent noir, and the Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), an intelligent science-fiction movie. My only real complaint is the ending. It's too abrupt. After Eleanor crashes her car into a tree, the others find her, and then it ends. Still, The Haunting was a great movie, and I could see my score going up upon a rewatch.8/10

I see all the 10 out of 10 reviews describing the film as the scariest movie ever made and I just don't understand it at all. I'm not a gore fanatic at all and I appreciate subtlety but the film is not remotely frightening and for a haunted house setting with the additional use of black and white, it is not even particularly atmospheric.I keep reading people going on about how terrifying the noises and the turning of the door knob were. To me, this was barely even suspenseful. There is honestly so little of the supernatural within the entire film that I'd hesitate to even describe it as a horror film. Most of the very little tension in the film involves Eleanor fighting with Theodora.Speaking of which, Julie Harris's character who is the protagonist of this film is irritating, boring and not remotely likable. In fact, the rest of the cast is very underwhelming with the possible except of Theodora who has maybe a little more personality than the rest.Despite all this and how disappointed I am with this film, I still can't quite bring myself to give it one star. There is a slight charm to it although I think this owes more to the time period that the film was set in than anything else.I'm writing this in bed at 1:56am and am totally confident that I could go to sleep right now without feeling any fear whatsoever.