I was lucky enough to attend the UK premier of this film and meet its’ writer and director. As the lights dimmed the film makers told us to prepare to ‘scream and gasp in fear’ like our American counter-parts had in screenings. Being typically British, nothing could be heard but the film and a few nervous giggles and then finally a polite reserved round of applause. This was a suiting response to an fun but unremarkable horror film.
Horror films run in trends, from the slasher revival of the 1990s to the Japanese remakes of the early 2000s, the graphic ‘torture porn’ films of the last few years and now the ‘haunted house flick’ which harks back to the early 50s. It is nice to see that blood and guts has being substituted for bumps in the night but real fear has also been diluted to a few jolts and chills.
The films tag line ‘it’s not your house that’s haunted, it’s your son’ gives you all the plot you need to know. The story concerns the Lambert family who have just moved into a new home. Their son has an accident causing him to go into a coma which the doctors just can’t find a cause for. It appears there are more sinister goings on as his mother, a strong performance by Rose Byrne, witnesses spooky goings on including whispers through a baby monitor and apparitions in her son’s room. So far, so ‘Paranormal Activity.’ Wan uses sound and shadow to create a tense, foreboding atmosphere that caused me to assume my safety position in horror films (squinty eyes and fingers in ears) on several occasions. His clever use of framing means that you’ll be searching your peripherals for any sign of movement and he exploits this well. Unlike recent horror films that pretend to be found footage, this is satisfyingly cinematic and gothic so worth seeing on the biggest screen possible.
All good things must come to an end however and once the plot exposition kicks in and we get into the realms of ‘astral projection’ things get less scary and more silly. Things unfold like a Goose Bumps book as a team of ghost hunters come in to set things straight and the sweats of fear turn to groans of cliché.
It’s a shame that the excellent sound design and startling imagery are tainted by the ultimately ridiculous plot that warranted unintentional laughter as po-faced actors deliver absurd lines with the utter most sincerity. It will make you jump and laugh, but not always for the right reasons.
Verdict
First half frights turn to second half foolishness in an enjoyable but silly horror flick that will leave you comfortable leaving the lights off.
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I find a lot of modern horror annoying because it seems that they are only able to scare with loud sounds and edgy camera flicks. There aren't many original ideas anymore that are plain scary and when these do come along there's always too much gore and just too much on screen for any real tension. Being scared by a loud sound and a jolty camera twirl is not a horror movie! I don't know... maybe you can only be scared by an idea when your a kid, but i long for the day that i check my room before i go to bed just in case freddy or Pennywise are about to jump out from behind the door.
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