The Haunting

When Eleanor, Theo, and Luke decide to take part in a sleep study at a huge mansion they get more than they bargained for when Dr. Marrow tells them of the house’s ghostly past.

• Director: Jan de Bont
• Genre:Horror / Mystery / Thriller
• Runtime:108 minutes

Cast

Liam Neeson : Dr. David Marrow
Catherine Zeta-Jones : Theo
Owen Wilson : Luke Sanderson
Lili Taylor : Nell
Bruce Dern : Mr. Dudley

Eleanor “Nell” Vance (Lili Taylor), a shy and rather plain-looking woman, has cared for her demanding invalid mother for eleven years. Soon after her mother dies, her sister (Virginia Madsen) evicts her. Nell then receives a telephone call, telling her about an advertisement for an insomnia study directed by Dr. David Marrow (Neeson) at Hill House—a secluded manor in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts. Nell arrives first and meets Mr. Dudley (Bruce Dern) and Mrs. Dudley (Marian Seldes), a strange pair of caretakers who do not stay on the property after dark. Soon afterward, two other participants of the study arrive, extroverted Luke Sanderson (Wilson), and attractive, bisexual Theo (Zeta-Jones), along with Dr. Marrow and his two research assistants.

Unknown to the participants, Dr. Marrow’s true purpose is to study the psychological response to fear. Each night, the caretakers chain the gate outside Hill House, preventing anyone from getting in or out until morning, when the caretakers open the lock. There are not any working telephones inside Hill House (although Dr. Marrow initially has a cellphone) and the nearest town is several miles away. The house was chosen because of its isolation.

During their first night at the mansion, Dr. Marrow relates the story of Hill House. The house was built by Hugh Crain—a 19th century textile tycoon. Crain built the house for his wife, hoping to populate it with a large family of children; however, all of Crain’s children died during birth. Crain’s wife died before the house was finished, and Crain became a recluse. After he tells the story, his female assistant’s face is slashed by a snapped piano wire. The freak accident causes Marrow’s research assistants to leave the house, leaving the doctor alone with the study participants for the duration of the study. From this scene onward, the story diverges increasingly from the original novel and the movie of 1963. Read more

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