Genuinely creepy

Rating: 8/10 (28 October 2009)

As someone who likes scary movie but hates torture porn, I was a little skeptical of this movie, especially since it was so hyped. I have to say that it was probably the most genuinely scary movie since The Haunting (1963). Proving that a movie doesn't need to have a huge special effects budget or the latest in CGI effects, the movie is very effective at building suspense, all the way through to the wonderful ending. My quibble with the movie is the characters seem to waffle. Katie is either scared and trusting that her husband will solve things or she's barking at him. Micah is either an insensitive jerk or a hero (and Micah the actor, who is gorgeous in a Ben Affleck sort of way, is more believable as a jerk than as a hero). Like the original The Haunting, there's a lot of suspense between the big scares. Like the over-the-top remake of The Haunting, there is room for this to be remade (which was the original plan, with this version on the DVD) really badly with lots of special effects. I hope that doesn't happen. The box office for this movie proves that there is a market for well-made, creative, low budget, and really creepy movies without all of the gore and torture of the Hostels, Saws, and Halloweens.