RichardJ

A classic example of how modern day special effects, no matter how well crafted (which they are in The Haunting) can ruin an otherwise good, if well used, storyline. If film makers limited the use of special effects to support the actors and plot, rather than as a substitute, then I think we would all benefit.

The film begins with a steady, albeit predictable build up and the first scenes in the house really make you want to believe it is has a mysterious and sinister past. However, about half way through the film the actors become secondary to the overdone special effects and seem to confine themselves to wandering around aimlessly.

At no stage during the film did I ever feel scared nor did I receive any sudden frights (compared, for example, to the "choke on your popcorn" frights delivered in Sixth Sense). If this was the aim of the film, then I'm afraid it failed miserably. In the scariness stakes, repeated loud noises and wobbly walls are no match for the brief glimpse of an unexplained shadow or a rapidly moving household object narrowly missing you.

I felt the ending to The Haunting was very abrupt and did not satisfactorily explain all that had happened in the closing scenes. While I usually don't mind films to end in such a way that make the audience work out the ending, I found in this case I didn't care.

By no means the worst film I have seen this year - there are a few good creepy scenes and the house is truly magnificent. The Haunting was sufficiently "average" to avoid me feeling cheated of my admission money, but it is not a film I intend to see again.

Although I go to the movies regularly, I didn't see a trailer for this film, and the few reviews I read beforehand suggested it would appeal mainly to women under 35. Being neither, I could have been excused for missing this film, which would have been a shame, because I enjoyed it. The acting from Danes, Beckinsdale and Pullman was excellent and a pleasant change from watching films where special effects try to substitute for quality acting. Brokedown Palace is one of the few films I've seen this year where I haven't been able to correctly predict the outcome half way through.

For me this was more than a repeat of the "tourist taken advantage of by nasty local/foreign low life" film. While it is clearly a cautionary tale of the risks of travelling abroad, it is also very much about trusting your friends and the extent you are willing to make sacrifices for them.

It is also a reminder that in any country, justice is dispensed by people with power, and the extent that truth features in the dispensing of justice is largely at their discretion. The film correctly portrays that crying "I'm an American citizen, I have rights" rarely sees an immediate release from jail and humble apology from the local police, nor does enlisting the help of the US embassy result in a company of marines landing at night to storm the jail and rescue you.

Brokedown Palace is one of the few films I have seen this year which I intend to see again.