They Are Here, Invisible, but Here.

Rating: 10/10 (10 May 2005)

The Stewart household is a strange one. An isolated house in the Isle of Jersey, it's constantly enveloped in thick, blue fog, all doors must remain closed, and drapes block the sunlight because the children suffer from an illness in which they are extremely sensitive to it. Grace Stewart (Nicole Kidman, finally coming to her own in a story worthy of her talents), wakes up one morning screaming from what may have been a nightmare. Three strangers arrive to the house and they tell Grace they are replying for her request for domestic help -- and almost immediately, though subtly, strange events begin happening and it slowly becomes clear that there are other unseen, unwanted people occupying their quarters. This only becomes more evident when Grace discovers, to her horror, that these servants are more than what they seem to and that her own reality is not what she believes it to be.
Alejandro Amenabar had already caught the attention of Tom Cruise who produced and starred in his own remake of OPEN YOUR EYES, which gave Cameron Diaz a nomination for Best Supporting Actress, and here he establishes himself for the American movie going public with his follow-up. Again going for clever storytelling -- even if it takes a while to take off -- and relying on atmosphere rather than on expensively produced special effects, it's a showcase for Nicole Kidman who carries the entire film on her shoulders and who conveys furious determination to protect her household and absolute terror at the unknown forces against her with intense verve. Fionulla Flannagan and Christopher Eccleston provide some interesting foils to her dominant presence, but the real star is the film itself, who never goes for a quick cheat to fabricate its denouement (diametrically opposed to what M. Night Shyamalan's style where the twist is everything). Already a contemporary classic, it will go down in cinema history as an updated take on THE HAUNTING, with more finely tuned performances, even darker atmosphere, and a rising sense of dread.