The Haunting Starring Liam Neeson, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Lili Taylor
The Haunting, a film so confusing that it forgets the true meaning of a horror film: to scare us.
If you've ever seen a movie, which you probably have considering you are on this website, you should know about all of the trivia they post before a movie. They have things like illustrations and you have to guess the movie or facts about the film. But, the one I always like are the "Other Name" joke that try and rename a particular film. For instance, the one playing before The Haunting had different titles for the film, Small Soldiers. They had titles like Little Infantry and Can I Get Those Fatigues in a Smaller Size? Well, after seeing The Haunting, I had a few particular names for it as well. Unfortunately, I can only post one of them, otherwise, I'd be getting some pretty angry e-mails from overprotective mothers. That title would be The Confusing. Ok, that is a pretty bad title, but it fits this film perfectly. It basically serves up no purpose, and combined with dry dialogue and a boring and confusing plot, it completes the formula for a cinematic bomb. Liam Neeson once again gets wrapped up in a film without any depth, but at least The Phantom Menace was exciting and had some depth. The Haunting is nothing but trash, but unfortunately, will still make a boatload of money.
Before I rant and rave about how bad this film is, let me point out the few, and I stress the word few, bright spots in this film. First, the house is great- looking. It looks beautiful, but this is also a dark spot. It looks so great that it is hard to be frightened by it. This is something that rears its ugly head at all points of the film. Things look so great, that you are looking on in awe instead of being scared straight. Haunted house films have to contain one element to even be slightly successful and that is being eerie. The Hill House is not eerie. It is beautiful, but not the least bit frightening. Ever heard of Lili Taylor? Before this film I did not, but I am glad that I do now. She gives the only satisfactory performance in the film. Despite the dry dialogue and boring/confusing concept, she manages to light up the screen every time she appears, but unfortunately, her co-stars are usually following right behind. Owen Wilson, who plays Luke, is the only other cast member even close to giving an admirable performance, other then Taylor. He is basically there for the comic relief, and his character development is poor in all other areas. All of the characters are desperately underdeveloped. Wilson had potential as Luke, but it seems they just needed him to add a few laughs. Liam Neeson and Catherine Zeta-Jones suffer from the dialogue and plot and should not have been in this film. Their characters must suffer from wicked mood swings because in each scene they turn from ruthless to compassionate to scared to brave and whatnot. They just are not believable and this is the final nail in The Haunting's coffin. The plot is terrible. The opening scene of the film is very important, but the director makes it too obvious by getting close-ups of all the things that will play a major role in the end of the film. As I sat through the film, I kept wondering what this film was trying to accomplish. Nell, Lili Taylor's character, goes from the hunted to the savior. It makes no sense and the director gives the audience no reasoning for the ridiculous changes that take place in the film. He forces the viewer to make various assumptions and does not give any in-depth information. For instance, the beginning of the film gives us a sense of why Nell is getting involved in the program. But, we get zilch for the other four. Plus, two of them get wiped out in the first ten minutes. And the worst part: most horror films have killings. For some reason, they kill off Luke at the end of the film. No reason whatsoever, just off with his head, literally. Overall, The Haunting is the epitome of a bad movie. Bad plot, confusing storyline and a waste of good talent. Hopefully, Liam Neeson can rebound and get into a good film and be used to his full potential. Hopefully, Lili Taylor will be recognized for doing such a great job in such a bad film. And hopefully, other horror films, such as The Blair Witch Project and The Haunting of Hill House, will not be as bad as this one.
Rating: 1 ½ Stars Out of 4 Stars The Movie Page- http://jump.to/moviepage Reviews, Previews, News and So Much More!
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