Don't buy the hype. Not scary -- CREEPY.

Rating: 9/10 (16 August 1999)

People have been burned by the hype for this movie. Let me offer a couple of suggestions to possibly prevent that from happening to any new viewers.
1) Don't buy the hype. This is not the scariest movie ever made. In fact, there's not a single big scare in the entire movie. That doesn't mean it can't creep you out. There's something to be said for the painfully slow building of tension.
2) Use your imagination. Try to pretend it's real. (Possibly a small spoiler here) Things will not be spelled out for you. Don't expect special effects. That's part of its charm. As Hitchcock could tell you, what you never see is far more moving that what you can.
That's my advice. It's a great movie, but it's not the movie you've been hyped to believe it is.