Nicole is two for two

Rating: 9/10 (4 November 2001)

Nicole Kidman is a lucky girl. She's got two great movies out there. All in the space of a year and both showcasing her ample talent. The Others in particular, while devoid of OTT performances, costumes and sing along songs, will appeal to a lot of people. People who enjoyed 'Sixth Sense' in particular will enjoy it, and those who're into X-Files' will surely enjoy this too. However, it isn't a slasher thriller, with some ditzy teenagers running around a school chased by a homicidal fisherman. No, it's much more intelligent and, to me, seemed a far slicker movie than even 'Sixth Sense'
It's focus is on a family, after the war, living in an old mansion (prime ghost story location! Why can't they have a nice semi detached?!). The children are photosensitive and the house must be kept in darkness and this creates an imposing atmosphere from the off. The characters, including the mother played by Kidman, seem to have more to them than we are led to believe at the start. There are noises in the house, the children say they've seen people walking around, the mother seems to on the edge and about to break, and all the while, the creepy atmosphere grows and grows.

It's strength lies in the fact that it doesn't simply throw the characters into scary situations, (e.g. some man chasing them around the house) to get a reaction from the audience. It instead creates a sense of dread. The director uses the camera and sound to merely suggest what's there. The viewer's mind is allowed to make up the rest (and is much more effective than several million dollars of special effects). The sound of whispering in an empty room, or the haunting sound of a piano playing from a locked room. And having creepy maids and gardeners puts the audience at unease, trying to second guess if they're good, bad or evil.
The story takes a lot of dramatic twists and turns. And in the end, everything is, to paraphrase one of the characters, "...Changed. It'll never be the same again." The conclusion is one to rival 'Sixth Sense'. You're feelings are towards the characters are completely different, and "The Others" of the title are not who you'd have thought they were.
The mother is, of course, the main focus of the story. Treading, it would seem, a fine line between exploding, and being ready to give up. At first, it seems sure fire who's good, and who's bad. But then you feel a growing antipathy towards some characters, and to a certain extent, the mother. In the end, though, you only feel extremely sorry and sad for the characters, yet angry at some of them too.
This movie, along with Moulin Rouge' was a pleasure to see (well, it was a pleasure in hindsight. It was definitely in the `too engrossed to move' range when I was in the middle of watching it) and I would recommend it to anyone (except those with baby's or heart conditions)