Customer Reviews

The Haunting of #24

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

For those who insist that every movie must have an absolute explanation,
a caption at the end that explains every detail, or that mood is only a miniscule part of cinema, "The Haunting of 24" is not for you.

On the other hand, those who appreciated "The Tenant" or "Session 9" (two obvious influences on this film) or simply enjoy simple ghost stories which don't require someone to be butchered every few frames, this is an absolute must see. I could easily envision MR James himself writing the script.

Stuart Laing plays John Hare: an appropriately lost, anguished young man who drifts aimlessly through life, constantly moving and getting stoned. His only anchor to the everyday world is his beautiful girlfriend Veronica. His relationship with her is fading as well: though his character could have been a bit more fleshed out, there's something eerily fitting about this anonymous unfortunate and the sparse history we are given about his new living quarters.

Susan Engel plays the creepiest old woman that I have ever seen-- sickly white hair, nearly all black eyes, withered not just from age but from a sedentariness that has lasted for centuries, her performance is simply frightening. At first she is the only other tenant in the entire apartment complex, till the "others" arrive and it becomes clear no one is going anywhere. "Landlord" Martin Stone, played perfectly by Robert Blythe, is a bigger deal than he seems to be. The father of the old woman, he struck some bargain with the Man In The Black Hat (who we see glaring into a photo and in full undertaker action at the end) to make this place into an eater of weak souls. And it seems to be working.

I don't pretend to understand this film or to claim that the plot itself is anything more than an attempt at drop dead scary suggestion: as that, though, it works real well. I didn't expect it to be that scary when I rented it and by the end, I was actually creeped out--which is mighty rare these days when I watch new horror movies. Destined to be a cult classic in much the same that "Burnt Offerings" or "Black Christmas" are.

Lie Still (Sean Hogan, 2005)

Lie Still is another of those no-budget horror movies that I really, really wanted to like, and here's a surprise: this is one of those no-budget horror movies, like Deadbirds and Shallow Ground, that really delivers the goods. Intelligently-written, intelligently-directed, well-acted, and chock full of atmosphere, this is one you probably missed that you shouldn't have.

John (EastEnders' Stuart Laing) is unemployed, separated from his girlfriend Veronica (Love Actually's Nina Sosanya), chronically depressed, and suffers from strange dreams. After moving out of Veronica's place, given his lack of funds, he rents the cheapest flat he can, in a run-down apartment building with an overly ebullient landlord, Martin (High Hopes' Robert Blythe), who tells him the building's full of neighbors who keep themselves to themselves. Well, except for the mad old bat nextdoor (Damage's Susan Engel). The building seems to be exacerbating both John's depression and his dreams, and they may be bleeding into his waking life. Either that, or there's something very, very wrong with the building itself...

As with most of these way-indie horror films that impress me, the first thing that stands out is the acting, which is well above average for these kinds of movies. It can be argued (and successfully) that one doesn't have to be much of an actor to run from the monsters and scream a lot, but comparing the acting in this movie to that in, say, Malibu Shark Attack (above) should be very instructive for even the causal film fan. Also, Hogan seems to be a director who knows how to do atmosphere in a way few horror directors have in recent times; there's more to be scared of here in a rattling doorknob than there is in the majority of American slasher films in the past fifteen years. Sure, it has its drawbacks, especially during the setup (there are a few of those "arty" shots that don't really seem connected to much, and don't quite work), but it's still an above-average indie horror flick, and if you like horror movies, you should see it. ***

Films like this dont come around very often. Trully rooted in the Horror traditions of films like the Women in Black, Dark Remains, The Changlening, and Burnt Offerings.
The story is a simple one, maybee not all that original. A young man with personal relationship problems rents a room in an old run down bording house, and although the house is ment to be full he doese not relize untill its too late, that apart from the landlord and an old women, he has not met any other ocupants.
What is trully incredible, is the feeling of total isolation and death, that this film creates. you really feel that there is no escapeing this mans solitude and eventual doom, he really is alone. With no way for him to escape the nightmare.
If you are a fan of horror, no I dont mean you saw Twilight or you are looking forward to the Night Mare on Elm street remake. The people I am talking about know who they are..... Buy this film you wont be sorry

I rented this DVD based on the recommendation of the other reviewer. Note to self: Don't ever buy, rent or otherwise obtain anything based on a single review.

After viewing this movie, I felt that it was only fair, as it had been rated with 5 stars, to add my own review in order to lower people's expectations. If I could give zero stars, I would.

This movie was confusing and boring. I didn't understand any of it. Who was the ugly man with the ugly hat in the picture? Where did the hero's girlfriend go to and why--I know she appeared on the television, but there was no explanation, and we never saw her again. Who was the old crone next door and why did she disappear 3/4s of the way into the movie? What was the story with the landlord--what was his motivation for continually keeping someone in the house? Why couldn't the hero even TRY to break a window to get out of the house? What was up with the headstone--who was buried under it (the ugly man in the ugly hat?) and who wrote the words "Lie Still" on it? There were so many unanswered questions, and possibly I wasn't paying enough attention and might not have had as many as I do here if I had, but even if the questions were apparently answered in the movie itself, it was awfully boring, not creepy in any respect, and just all around a waste of time, unfortunately.

This movie, as described, seemed like it might be interesting. I watch a lot of Horror, and Sci-fi, and Fantasy , and Supernatural movies, and I gotta say, that 94% of them are garbage, with cool Titles, and the Dopey Picture on the cover of the DVD box, of the spookey-looking barefoot little girl in the nightie routine gets old. As does the stupid Vampire or Zombie, or Slasher themes. THIS particular movie really sucked. One of those "Overly Chatty" British crappola movies, with little or no substance between very long British chatty sequences. I HATE Chatty British movies. "I Caun't", "I Shaunt", "Take a Chaunce". This British yappity Chattyness gets annoying very quickly. I even HATE the Geico Lizard Commercials. Damned annoying. My Copy of this movie went straight into the trash. Only kept the empty box, without the cover art. "I Caun't take a Chaunce like this again". "Caun't, and Chaunce", "Caun't and Chaunce". "Caun't and Chaunce", in every scene. You almost wait for someone to say them, half-expecting it. Dammed annoying.