Full of Suspense and Atmosphere

Rating: Null/10 (12 November 2001)

I think this film was the best horror film I've seen in ages. The performances were excellent. All of them, were able to relay the subtleties and depth of their screen personalities to a great extent. The set lent itself very well to a film of this nature; the spooky old mansion and the ever present fog helps to create a feeling of isolation and an out of this world quality.
The only thing I would say about this film is that it was a bit too similar to sixth sense and so i can see why there are so many comparisons. It is just a shame that The Others was not released first because it is a far superior film. Sixth Sense relies too much on that typical Hollywood over-sentimentality which, rather than make you warm to the characters more, actually makes you want them to get it. The Others conformed less to the Hollywood stereotype, the characters were not wholly likeable but ALL had enough depth and mystery that you were really interested in finding out what happened to them so . This also meant that the film had less need for special effects to keep the audience interested. Also, the slow pace of the film, in my mind, actually made the film as it built up the suspense . In that way it reminded me of blair witch. you never actually see anything in Blair Witch but that is it's strongest point; you are always imagining what might just be around the corner..... I think the fear of the unknown can be very scary and these 2 films portray this to great effect.
I think you need to have a vivid imagination to enjoy The Others as you never actually see anything,. If you are someone that is not affected by something until it is hitting you in the face then this film is not for you.