There is nothing that I love better than a good ghost movie, but, sadly, a good ghost movie is the rarest of all crown jewels in the Horror film canon. Over the past decade there have been a few very good ghost films (What Lies Beneath, The Sixth Sense, Stir Of Echoes) and some very poor, overproduced pieces of crap (The Haunting, The House On Haunted Hill). However, there has only been one film that I would consider a masterpiece of the genre: The Others.
The Others is not only my favorite ghost movie, it’s also one of my favorite films of any genre. In the grand tradition of The Innocents, The Others contains all of the essentials of a good ghost film, and then some: a lonely, misty atmosphere; a huge, gothic estate; hauntings that are subtle instead of blaring (when will big budget horror movie directors learn that it’s what you DON’T see that is most frightening?); arcane 19th century morbid touches such as the “Book of the Dead” scrapbook of post-mortem photographs; and exceptional acting, especially by the creepy children. All this, and a devastating twist at the end as well. Sheer gothic perfection!
The other night I saw another film that almost rises to the same lofty heights: the Italian film The Orphanage (Il Orfanato). Like The Others, The Orphanage is set in a huge gothic estate – this time a former orphanage – and centers around a mother and child. There are lots of creepy urban exploration touches (hidden rooms and morbid secrets), freaky costumes, and another great plot twist at the end. Even better, it’s one of those films that can be interpreted as either a ghost story or a psychological study, depending on your perspective. A highly recommended masterpiece of the genre.
The Orphanage (Il Orfanato) (2007)
More film recommendations can be seen at The Library Eclectica.
El Orfanato is a film which was made in Spain, I bleive. There may have been some relation to Mexico. Guillermo del Toro(Pan’s Labyrinth, Cronos, Devil’s Backbone) produced this film for this awesome debut by a S[anish director. You may have seen a French-dubbed, with English subtitles? Anyways, I agree – It is a solid piece of work.
I meant Italian, as you suggested.
I, too, saw this movie and loved it. I had to pay close attention since it was in Italian and I had to read the conversations. But, an excellent movie that wasn’t overdone.
If you haven’t seen it yet, I highly recommend An American Haunting for many of the same reasons you loved The Others. It’s fantastic!
Yes, my girlfriend wants me to see that movie. It’s definitely on my “to-see” list.
Just brilliant! I saw it at the movies (bless the big screen!) and was totally mesmerised.
Yep, totally worth a view if you haven’t already.
I’m hoping like anything there isn’t a US remake in the works.
Please see the original “The Haunting” (1963) and not the recent crud that came out in 1999.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057129/
The DVD commentary has some wonderful insights on my favorite author Shirley Jackson…
Thanks so much for the suggestion; I’m adding this one to my Netflix. I simply *love* “The Others”; you’re right, it is perfection as far as ghost movies go.
It’s a brilliant film – but not what you’d expect. I highly recommend you watch Del Toro’s other ghost masterpiece, The Devil’s Backbone and his version of a vampire in Cronos.
For a REALLY creepy ghost story, you must watch Hideo Nataka’s ‘Ring’ (Japanese: ‘Rungu’). Takashi Shimizu’s ‘Ju-On: The Grudge’ is also very scary. Disregard the crappy Hollywood re-makes and get the originals – your hair will literally stand on end 🙂
@Magnoire
Absolutely right Magnoire – one of the scariest films ever!