Spooky Spooky ! (The Others (Collectors Edition, 2 DVDs))

Member Name: WormThatTurned

Product:	The Others (Collectors Edition, 2 DVDs)
Date:	15/11/03 (62 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Atmospheric, Spine tingling, attention holding, Nicole Kidman, kids acting

Disadvantages: Under used genre

The Others

Genre : Ghost thriller

Released : 2001

Certificate : PG

Duration : 101 minutes

Direction : Alejandro Amenabar

Cast : Nicole Kidman/ Fionnula Flanagan/ Christopher Eccleston/ Alakina Mann/ James Bentley/ Eric Sykes.

The world is at war in the 1940's and Grace (Nicole Kidman) is left alone in her Gothic Jersey mansion with her two young children, Anne and Nicholas (Alakina Mann and James Bentley), wondering whether her husband and their father will ever return alive from the front-line.

Strange things occur from the very start, all the staff at the mansion have disappeared overnight and Grace has been left to run the house all on her own. On top of this the children have a very rare condition which means that they are sensitive to direct sunlight, this means that the house has to be kept in total darkness to avert a disaster. All is not lost however, three servant's answer her S.O.S advert in the paper to help her out, a housemaid, a gardener and a mute cleaner. Grace runs her house with clinical efficiency, locking doors as she passes from room to room and tending to the needs of her children, she expects the same of her three new servants and they struggle to meet her strict demands, the servants give each other knowing looks and seem to know something that Grace and ourselves don't. Unusual things start happening in this secluded abode, doors are left unlocked, curtains have been undrawn, sounds and noises from above - Grace blames the new servants at first but gradually it becomes clear secrets lay behind the walls. Grace determined to keep her existence as normal as possible struggles to cope as the strange happenings increase in intensity. Could the servants be playing tricks on her or could the house be haunted by ghosts ?? Anne her daughter seems to think so, she claims she sees and speaks to ghosts - Grace gradually realises she is entwined in a battle save hersel

f and her children for their very sanity from 'The Others'.

The Others has been likened in very many reviews to 'Sixth Sense' because of it's plot twist but it's a completely different film in many ways- both films came out within a year of each other so that's what I put it down to. The Others is essentially a haunted house film, a film which possesses hardly any special effects and relies almost wholly on conjuring images in your mind rather than on the screen. It does remind me a lot of the old fashioned creepy gothic house, black and white chillers that you used to see years ago, a genre that appears to have been abandoned in a world when special effects and big budget ideas rule the roost. Although it may appear old fashioned, the film works, it uses the power of the big screen to entertain you and take you away from the outside world.

The film is dominated by the performance of Nicole Kidman as Grace which is fantastic, Grace is struggling as events are taking place beyond her control, she has a domineering attitude towards her hired help and her children who she demands read the bible every night - her harsh, religious, paranoid regime is open to abuse and it does get abused, Grace fights for what she believes in which makes her hard to like but you can see her vulnerability and her sexual repression at the same time. Kidman pulls the role off to a tee, she appears to have got under the skin of Grace and seemed to know what is required of her in every scene, her pure white skin against a film almost totally shot in darkness only adds to the creepy, clammy, oppressive atmosphere and I cannot think of anyone who could have played this role better, certainly her finest performance to date.

The childen, Alakina Mann and James Bentley, are a huge plus point when summing up the movie - they have big roles to play and a lot of lines to deliver and they both give excellent performances. I especially liked th
e girl who played the rebellious Anne who seems to recognise that her mothers actions have significance. Fionnula Flanagan who plays the housemaid and Eric Sykes the gardener are also good and add to the overall creepiness of the film. You know from the start that they are not what they seem but you just can't put your finger on what role they have to play.

The Others in my view is great fun and a very good change to the norm, it doesn't seem to work on video or DVD and is one of those films that almost seems perfect for a night at the cinema however that doesn't change the fact that it's very well made and acted. I have read several times that this film is predictable but I don't agree - it kept me guessing with every single twist and turn right up to the end when the final big twist is added and the secret of the film is outed.

A creepy chiller with a sinister, malevolent feel to it, superb performances and a gradual increase in tension lead to a scary finale - highly recommended.

Quotes;

" Sooner or later, they will find you"

" They're everywhere, they say this house is theirs"

" You're wicked you are, I say wicked"


Thanks for reading folks


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WormThatTurned2003

Summary: