A Haunting in Connecticut

I saw this episode when it aired back in '02 and was totally sucked into the storyline within minutes. The combination of high production values, movie-quality direction, and terrifying storyline had me hypnotized. I've seen a LOT of horror movies over the years, but only a handful really had me looking under my bed.

This was one of them.

The narrator, Anthony Call, has a perfect campfire-story delivery that genuinely adds to the proceedings. After watching this episode I learned to never buy a house that was once a funeral parlor.

Even if you don't believe in the paranormal, give this fine TV series a chance. You won't regret it. Oh, and I dare you to watch it alone.

On a stormy night.

In the dark. heh heh heh

I made the serious mistake of watching this feature length documentary shortly before going to bed. I did not sleep at all that night.

This is the allegedly true story of the Parker family, whose eldest son is terribly ill and requires frequent hospital visits. In order to be closer to the hospital where he receives treatment, the entire Parker family move into a new home which is a shorter drive from the facilities. It is also conveniently located quite close to a cemetery. The house itself is a large, impressively grandiose estate, but when Mr. and Mrs. Parker head downstairs just after purchasing the home, they discover a basement room filled with an odd assortment of surgical tools and a large freezer. To their horror, the couple realize they are standing in a disused embalming room. The house was once a funeral home.

Having sunk their life savings into the purchase of their new home, The Parkers have no choice but to go ahead and move in. They decide to conceal the history of the house from their children, but odd things soon begin to occur. A kitchen floor stubbornly refuses to be cleansed of a vicious pool of blood. The sickly teenage boy, Paul, begins hearing voices, and all of the children see phantoms and shadows moving throughout the house. Paul's temper begins to fray and he grows increasingly violent. Not even removing him from the house seems to help, which his parents do after he attacks his own cousin. Instead, the forces inside of the house shift their focus, and the demonic displays of physical violence and destruction reach explosively frightening levels. By the time a team of parapsychologists arrive to investigate, it is almost too late.

This is a very eerie documentary, and incredibly well made. The mood throughout is suffocatingly dreary and filled with unrelenting dread. The performances are all quite good and somehow, genuine fear is infused into every frame. Whether it's the discovery of the embalming equipment in the basement, or a face-to-face encounter with a black-eyed demon in the darkness, this documentary will leave you with a sinking feeling of horror in the pit of your stomach and an overwhelming urge to glance around your immediate surroundings during the commercials, just to make sure there is nothing lurking in the shadowy corners.

I really had not intended to stay up and watch the entire program, but it hooked me easily and kept me watching late into the night, despite the fact that I had to get up early for work the next day. I didn't sleep that night anyway, and kept my bedside light on all night long. That's how unsettling I found this program to be, and I don't scare easily.

If you like ghost stories, historical accounts of haunted houses, and having the holy old crap scared out of you, watch this show the next time it's run on TV. It's one of the best shows of its kind I have ever seen. Be sure to catch its companion piece: A Haunting in Georgia, as well.

I started watching this for no particular reason and couldn't stop. It's basically documentary format telling of a supposedly true story involving a haunted house. It was very well acted, directed, and produced. Although it totally had a made-for-TV vibe, in this case the people involved in the creative process really nailed the genre. My girlfriend was scared to death and begged me to change the channel to "Pet Star" or "Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction" or maybe even "Animal Face-Off" (three of our standby favorites) but I refused, wresting the remote from her hand as I threw back my head and cackled maniacally. Anyway, I couldn't stop watching, I had to know what happened next. I think this movie is going to catch on as one that I'll watch every All Hallow's Eve and get my friends (who are legion, I assure you) to watch as well. We started out laughing about the bearded demon guy when he first appeared but by the time it was over and I was in bed I was terribly frightened that he was at any moment going to show up in my room and make with the spooky. I highly recommend this movie to anyone who likes horror. It may not be a remake or cop any Japanese trends, but it's something special. All who were involved should be very proud.

I think almost everyone likes ghost stories, and particularly if they are real. The universe of the supernatural, despite the fear it causes in many people, remains fascinating. Being a person to whom the supernatural is a relatively close affair, of course I already knew this story when I saw this documentary, which is now a few years old.

The documentary addresses the story as if it were a movie made for TV: loaded with scenes that recreate what happened, give the people what they want, while fulfilling their role as a documentary, being true to the truth. I enjoyed seeing the testimonials of those involved, and the emotional way they reported the facts, even after so many years. For anyone, an experience like theirs is profound and upsetting, and I believe they will not have seen the world around with the same eyes. Touching the "invisible world" means losing the right not to believe in it. I think they did well to hide their faces ... I wouldn't want to show mine if I went to TV to report one of the darkest pages of my life. Nevertheless, I don't know if the documentary did well by hiding the names and nicknames of those involved, as it is easy for anyone to find them on the Internet. If it is publicly known, why omit it?

The Parker family moves into an old home in Connecticut in order to be closer to the hospital where their son Paul is undergoing cancer treatment. Turns out that the house used to be a funeral parlor that is haunted by several demons who proceed to terrorize the family in general, and poor Paul in particular, threatening to undo his physical improvements by damaging his mind, and forcing him out of the house altogether, which does not end the haunting... First of two specials that led to the TV series creates an effectively eerie isolated & snowy atmosphere, even if viewer gets the feeling that the whole story is not being told. Still quite good regardless.