An American Haunting

A decent movie with good performances by the always wonderful Sissy Spacek and Donald Sutherland, but one person that stuck out was Rachel Hurd-Wood. I was a little nervous because of the director (Courtney Solomon) last movie which was the terrible Dungeons and Dragons,and I was right... he was not fit for the role of Director. The thing is at some parts made me squeamish and you could actually feel the hair on the back ofyour neck in some parts(SOME IS THE KEY WORD). The cinematography by master Adrian Biddle and the score by Caine Davidson are first rate.The movie is a really clichéd, though and some of the camera angles gave me a headache.

Whatever possesses the demon in "An American Haunting" to ruin the lives of the Bell family is never made clear. Nor are we ever sure that it was the curse put upon the family by a woman who felt cheated by the father in a land dispute. And why all the attention is put on the girl (RACHEL HURD-WOOD) instead of the father (DONALD SUTHERLAND) is another factor never really explained. He's the one the entity really wanted to destroy but he's not the first target. He's excellent in a rather underwritten role that makes him an ambiguous figure.

With all of these reservations aside, the film is beautifully filmed and despite being shot on location in Rumania has an American Gothic look that is appropriate for the story. The acting is uniformly good. SISSY SPACEK excels as the worried mother who sees how tormented her daughter is by the demon. JAMES D'ARCY is interesting as the teacher who has a hard time realizing there is a real haunting going on, his disbelief being another factor hard to rationalize. THOM FELL is fine as the stalwart son anxious to protect his sister.

And for a story about things that go bump in the night, it has plenty of chilling moments for lovers of films of this genre. And yet, despite all of the good elements--the settings, the photography, the fine performances--it never manages to be completely convincing, especially as it tries to explain things toward the end. The book-ending that frames the story with an opening and closing in present time seems an unnecessary touch.

At times, it's so overdone that it's hard to believe it's based on a true story. I'm sure there's some truth at the core, but surely the writers embellished the tale with a lot of manufactured dream elements reminiscent of the "Nightmare on Elm Street" variety, letting their imaginations run wild with menacing wolves and the howling wind.

A project that could have been so much better if it just concentrated on the real ghost story at the center of the tale.

Let's say it flat out, An American Haunting is the scariest, most intelligent ghost story to hit the screen in two decades. More original than The Others (which was a watered down cocktail of The Innocents and The Sixth Sense), and ten times more effective than the pallid The Exorcism of Emily Rose, An American Haunting wastes no time in setting itself up as a thriller with something more on its mind than just simply rehashing the same old grab bag scare tactics that every 'Exorcist' remake/rehash resorts to. Based on The Bell Witch, an apparently true account of demonic possession that resulted in the first recorded case of a ghost actually killing a human being over a hundred and fifty years ago in Tennessee, the film elevates itself by not wallowing in cheap tricks to scare you, and by always taking the high road. And, by doing so it creates it's very own world, a unnerving mood and an a undercurrent that prevails throughout until, when you least expect it - it strikes out, grabs you by the throat, and doesn't let go until the very last frame. The sheer terror of waiting and watching until the entire story unfolds (in a way you least expect) is so original and surprising, that by the time the finale hits you, it shatters you like no other horror film you've ever seen . The performances by Donald Sutherland and Rachel Hurd-Wood are first rate. It's their story all the way, and the beauty and generosity of the other actors subtle, effective performance (especially Sissy Spacek) is a testament to their respect of the material. But the real star of this film is director/writer Courtney Solomon. After having recovered from the bollocking he took for the impossible task of bringing Dungeons & Dragons: The Movie, to the screen Mr Solomon has rebounded with a story he was born to tell, and the result is an assured, first rate thriller, told with intelligence, force, style and wit. It's a roller coaster ride all the way, so fasten your seat belts. The audience I saw it with at the AFI Film Festival could not have been more responsive. You could actually feel the hair on the back of your neck standing up. The cinematography by master Adrian Biddle and the score by Caine Davidson are first rate, and help propel you into an unforgettable ghost story that will linger in your memory and haunt your dreams/nightmares for months after.

Out of sheer curiosity I was offered to attend a screening of the world premier of 'American Haunting" -- so I went assuming it was going to be just another kind of scary -- kind of twisted -- kind of blasphemous -- kind of whatever -- kind of films -- WoW I was completely wrong in more ways than I can possible say! WOW! That is the best I can muster! This film kicked my butt up down and sideways. From the moment it starts up until the very last breath it toys with you, teases you, and never prepares you for something so intelligent at the climax that its hard to guess why someone hasn't done this kind of film before. My guess, is they don't have the talent or the guts that the filmmaker had -- not to mention the cast; or the composer for that matter. My god it rocked me and I'm betting it will definitely rock a hell of a lot of people who dare go see it. WoW! Count the days til this comes out -- you wont regret it -- seriously. Its one of a kind on all fronts. I decided to write this because I cant stop telling every single person I know how freaking scary the damn thing was. WOW!

Where are my series of emojis? I need "eh", "sigh" and finally, snooze.

Look, poltergeist/haunting/possession movies are old hat in my opinion. You'd have to be extremely creative to make something from that genre be fresh, new and compelling. "An American Haunting" was not.

The setting is Tennessee year 1817 and a teenage girl is being harassed by an entity. The family cannot rid themselves of this specter no matter what measures they take. The movie plays out as you would expect with slow build up and a plethora of jump scares (that were anything but--jump annoyances is more accurate).

I patiently suffered through this movie to await the big reveal. Yes, the movie had something of a twist in store but not the least bit satisfying. I will be haunted by this movie and the decision I made to watch it.