DVD Review: Haunting, The (C-)

The Haunting (1963)
Directed by Robert Wise
Starring Julie Harris, Claire Bloom, Richard Johnson, Russ Tamblyn
MPAA: G
Grade: C-

Review by Bobby Nashville

Yawn. Okay, I've read a ton of reviews claiming that The Haunting is chilling, horrifying and of course haunting. Some of these reviewers must be a lot jumpier than I am, because I found it to be frustrating, plodding and most of all, boring.

The premise of The Haunting is simple: a researcher (Richard Johnson, doing his best Clark Gable) brings a group of people to spend time in a haunted house. Their goal is to scientifically verify the supernatural occurrences but they really don't do any scientific tests, they basically wander around trying to find out who keeps closing doors when they aren't looking.

The characters in The Haunting have some key flaws and I found them very frustrating. When there are pounding noises coming from the house's hallways, the lead scientist doesn't have the guts to open the door to see what's really happening. What kind of scientist is that? Sheesh. It left me thinking: if the scientist wants to explore haunted occurences so much, why doesn't the bozo just open the damn door? I almost expected Shaggy to come around the corner with a bong and a ham and cheese sandwich at any moment. Actually that might have been kind of cool, now that I think about it.

There is an interesting sub plot here between Theo the psychic lesbian (now we are getting somewhere!) and the emotionally challenged Nell, but they keep this below the surface. A remake of the Haunting starring Catherine Zeta Jones and Lili Taylor came out in 1999 and I would bet that these subplots were milked for all they were worth. (Note to self: make a ham and cheese and rent the remake).

If you are looking for a good old fashioned scary movie, skip The Haunting and try The Ring, The Others or the surprisingly scary Black Christmas.

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