The Haunting DVD
Watching the remake of “The Haunting” is the equivalent of going to a Halloween party you’ve really been looking forward to only to find out that the turd in the punch bowl is real. Forget things that go bump in the night, be afraid of things that go dump in the night.
This film stinks so bad it’s funny, but not funny in a ha-ha way. The performances and dialogue are so lame they inspire laughter. Too bad “The Haunting” isn’t a comedy. After “Speed 2” and this film, director Jan De Bont will be lucky if he can get a job shooting Hansen music videos.
De Bont and writer David Self obviously believe that bigger is better. They forget that the original film version of “The Haunting” (based on Shirley Jackson’s truly terrifying “The Haunting of Hill House”) worked so well because of what the audience didn’t see. Director Robert Wise created mood and suspense through insinuation and shadows.
De Bont is one of those in-your-face directors who doesn’t trust modern, jaded audiences to sit through a ghost story without giving up the ghost. Perhaps De Bont should sit through “The Blair Witch Project.” In dealing with matters of the supernatural, it helps to keep the audience in the dark as much as the characters on the screen.
It also helps to have a director capable of drawing out believable performances from his cast. Both “Ghost” and “Poltergeist” worked so well because their respective directors understood that for the fantasy to be taken seriously, the characters experiencing it must be believable. People don’t act in De Bont films, they over act.
You can hardly blame the performers. They’re forced to chew scenery because there is nothing else to feast on. Self’s screenplay is a wasteland of cliches and predictability, while De Bont seems more interested in showing off production designer Eugenio Zanetti’s remarkable sets. The actors are left to fend for themselves, so their over reactions are more a survival instinct than a creative decision.
Maybe “The Haunting” was the film star Liam Neeson was working on when he gave that interview where he said he wanted to quit working in movies. I imagine after two months of working on the film Neeson probably thought his career would be over anyway. Might as well beat the critics to the punch.
You feel sorry for Neeson because he is such a good actor trapped in such a nothing role. He plays Dr. David Marrow, a psychologist doing a study on fear. In order to keep his study a secret, Dr. Marrow claims to his subjects that he is doing a study on sleep disorders.
His study attracts three subjects, including the mousey Eleanor (call her Nell), a thirty-something woman who has spent her entire life taking care of a sick mother. Now that her mother has died, Nell (Lili Taylor) finally has her life back, but can’t escape her mother’s presence.
Theo (Catherine Zeta-Jones) is the most spirited of the group, a bisexual (the reference is made and then instantly dropped) woman who hasn’t had a decent nights sleep in her life. Then there is Luke Sanderson (Owen Wilson), a handsome young pup who is totally stoked to be in the group.
Of course none of the group can understand why Marrow would choose the distant and cavernous Hill House mansion to conduct a sleep disorder study, including the mansion’s handyman (Bruce Dern) and housekeeper (Marian Seldes).
It doesn’t take long before the participants learn the truth about their participation, or for the house to come monstrously to life. Marrow tries to convince them that it’s all part of the study, but when the supernatural events start becoming malevolent, it’s every man and woman for themselves.
De Bont’s major misstep is his insistence to put everything up on the screen. Nothing is left to the imagination. You could close your eyes and describe the action on the screen with little or no problem. Unfortunately, the images in your mind would be far more horrific than those on the screen.
You have to admire the technical aspects of the film. The production design is incredible, with some of the biggest sets I have ever seen in a film. They are truly cavernous, giving the film a depth of field that is uncommon. However, De Bont unfairly exploits the production design, telegraphing several ghostly effects to come later.
The music by Jerry Goldsmith is also a plus, a creepy blend of sounds designed to put you on edge. They do.
You just wish the performances, both flesh and computer generated, were as effective. Neeson looks tired and confused, while poor Lili Taylor, the queen of the Independent film circuit, is relegated to looking lost most of the time. Zeta-Jones looks lovely, but the leather outfit she wears has more layers than her character. Wilson looks like he would rather be surfing.
The only decent performance in the film belongs to the great character actress Marian Seldes, but she is forced to utter the expected warning about the house, and you have to wonder if they had to inject novocaine in her cheeks so she could keep a straight face.
A good ghost story should both intrigue and scare you. A great ghost story should make the hair on the back of your neck. The remake of “The Haunting” does neither. You shake your head in disbelief at wonder how so much money can buy so little.
COMPLETE CHECK-UP
VISION: 20/20
2.35:1 Widescreen
16:9 Enhanced
RSDL
Breathtaking digital transfer perfectly captures the tone of the film, with strong shadows, warm colors and excellent attention to detail. The widescreen transfer looks marvelous, including sharp, vivid images and natural colors that compliment every frame. Saturation is perfect, with absolutely no bleed over or fading. Blacks are the best they can be, providing for great atmosphere. Pristine print allows for clean whites and impressive shadows. No visible compression artifacts. Instead, you’ll find impressive attention to detail that allows you to pick out every little pattern on the wall, and a depth of field that appears natural. Flesh tones are realistic without being pasty. Excellent job.
HEARING: Excellent
5.1 Dolby Digital Surround
THX EX Encoded
The soundtrack is a complete audio experience, putting you right in the middle of the action. The 5.1 Dolby Digital mix possesses your audio equipment and forces it to work overtime. All sound fields get a work out, including an awesome rear channel stereo split that is just as impressive as the front sound field, Dialogue mix is exact, with no dropouts or distortion. Front stage stereo effects are genuinely distracting, while the surround effects are absolutely dynamic. You’ll be awash in a whirlpool of data, including musical cues that purr, booming basses that will rock your world, and middle and high ends that are so pure they make the hair on the back of your neck stand up. No hiss or distortion at all. Just sit back and allow the soundtrack to drag you into the mayhem.
ORAL: Good
Closed captions in English for the hard of hearing.
COORDINATION: Okay
A thirty-minute behind-the-scenes documentary-featurette starring Catherine Zeta-Jones that delves into the making of the film, the source material, and director Jan DeBont. The cast and crew share their thoughts in lengthy interviews, while background material takes us on a tour of the original house and other haunted sites. I believe I saw this featurette on one of those cable stations like E or HBO.
Cast & Crew Bios & Filmographies.
Impressive animated theme main and scene access menus.
Two (2) Theatrical Trailers.
PROGNOSIS: Fit
Fans of the film will appreciate the extra care that went into the DVD transfer.
VITALS: $29.98/Rated PG-13/113 Minutes/Color/24 Chapter Stops/Keepcase/#84820
ATTENDING RESIDENT: John Larsen
PATIENT: THE HAUNTING-SIGNATURE SERIES
BIRTH DATE: 1999
HMO: Dreamworks Home Entertainment
