Directed by: Christopher Leitch
Starring: Jeri Ryan, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Kay Panabaker, Peyton R. List, Ian Kahn
Original channel: Lifetime Movie Network
Distributed by RHI Entertainment
MPAA Rating: Not rated
Running time: 90 minutes
Our Score: 2 out of 5 stars
Unfortunately this film suffers from made for TV fever. This has the potential of being scary and creepy but it is ends up being too tamed down. This movie originally aired on the Lifetime Channel and would work well for housewives that aren’t fans of horror. It falls into the same genre as the TV series “Ghost Whisperer”, which also is a show I never enjoyed.
The story focuses on a single mom, Rachel Easton, and her two daughters as their move into this big beautiful house. Although this house has a secret and the family will soon uncover a horrifying secret of what happened in the house years ago. Rachel needs to fight in order to save her family.
Overall there is no scares in this film at all. It looses its steam after a few and doesn’t regain it. If you are a fan of that type of show or Jeri Ryan in general, then this might be for you. Horror fans looking for a scare need to steer clear. Any hopes to special features are let down as well because this DVD includes no extras at all.
I couldn’t disagree more.
Kay Panabaker’s performance as the older daughter MAKES this taut, spooky, little drama. My wife and I enjoyed this immensely.
Horror films dealing with the supernatural need to emphasise the implicit. Mood, setting and foreshadowing go a long way. When it works well, you’re scared almost as much by your own anticipation as anything else. Hitchcock understood that.
A good horror film knows how to scare, NOT disgust. Cheap slash-’em-ups and gorefests that are nothing but self-indulgent showing off for the pimply nerds in the special effects department are NOT horror films. These implausible wastes of celluloid are laughable, filled with unintentional humour and directed by dreckmeisters. And as films, they FAIL.
Give me ACTING and atmosphere any day. This film SUCCEEDS.