It could have been so good

Rating: 7/10 (26 September 2001)

Nicole Kidman stars as a single mother of two, left alone in a large mansion as her husband goes off to war. Their home is completely isolated and it is constantly smothered in fog. To make matters worse, their home has no electricity, and her children are deathly allergic to sunlight. In the first five minutes, this movie had all its ducks in a row, to create a chilling thriller. It could have been so good, but writer/director Alejandro Amenabar failed to turn this wonderfully eerie setting into a scary movie. It was like the haunted house that looks creepy and scary from the outside, but has nothing frightening once you get inside.
Early on in the movie three strangers approach the house seeking work. Grace(Kidman) welcomes them in to work, commenting that her previous staff had recently disappeared. Immediately we are aware that there is more to these three than we are being told. Grace's daughter Anne has seen people in her house that nobody else can see. Are there ghosts? Or does an simply have an active childish imagination? The remainder of the movie seeks to answer these questions, with Kidman's character seeming to lose more and more of her sanity along the way.
There are a few very excellent qualities about this movie, the first being the previously addressed setting. Also there are very strong performances throughout this movie, which is extremely important sice the movie revolves around a very small cast. Firstly, I am not normally a Nicole Kidman fan, and so to say that she was fine, is to say that she did not annoy me. That is quite a compliment in itself. Secondly, her children are wonderful. Particularly Alakina Mann in the role of Kidman's young daughter. There were scenes between her and Kidman that I thought that she completely stole. Finally, Fionnula Flanagan as the elderly maid Mrs. Mills held this movie together. Every time I got bored and disinterested, she would come on the screen and renew my interest. I know that these are not familiar actors, but they were wonderful with what they had. The problem was that they had very little. This movie plods along with nothing really happening.
The one other very strong quality this movie offers, is the final ten minutes. These final minutes are wonderful and priceless. I only wish that all of the writing leading up to it had been as interesting. Unfortunately I can not recommend sitting bored for 120 minutes, only to enjoy 10 of them. If that ratio is fine with you, then enjoy those last ten minutes.
Ultimately this is a movie with much promise, much potential, but sadly lacking in substance. Thrillers must either create tension, or scares, and there are too few of either one for me to recommend this movie. Wait until it's out on video and then you can fast forward as necessary. Dr.'s orders.