Not for the first time, I got a late arrival intended for October. Rather than save it for next year, I decided to bid Halloween farewell with Martin Scorsese's personal favorite horror. In truth, I think my main reason to put it on my queue in the first place was that the Nostalgia Critic cited it as a G-rated movie that couldn't get a G anymore.
Nell (Julie Harris) accepts an invitation from one Dr. Markway (Richard Johnson) to spend a week at Boston's Hill House and evaluate rumors of its haunting. Along for the ride are Theodora (Claire Bloom), who might have ESP; Luke (Russ Tamblyn), who doesn't believe the rumors at all but expects to inherit the mansion; and eventually Mrs. Markway (Lois "Moneypenny" Maxwell), who tries to talk her husband out of this nonsense. They all observe strange phenomena, but only Nell gets driven over the edge....
I find Nell unusually difficult to relate to among protagonists. Part of that may stem from a difference in backstory: Her obnoxious old mother had died in her care, possibly due to deliberate negligence. Living with her guilt-tripping sister and brother-in-law did nothing to relax her after that, so she badly needed any kind of vacation. She just happened to pick a spot inadvisable for anyone dealing with a recent death. But her mental arguments with herself still go in directions I don't expect. She tends to spook more easily than the others -- even the moment she laid eyes on the house, which merely looked old to me -- yet no matter how miserable she gets, she refuses to entertain the idea of leaving early. By the end, she plans to stay forever. Guess she's more of a fright junkie than I am.
I appreciate that the second most prominent character is Theodora, allowing an easy pass of the Bechdel test. The fact that she calls herself "Theo" hints at her orientation, which I admittedly didn't pick up on, tho it's more overt than in the book. The resulting incompatibility would explain the dynamics between the two.
The other characters are OK. Johnson learned better acting techniques in the course of the filming, tho his man of science has some unprofessional moments. Luke takes a long time to lose his carefree demeanor, and it's not clear whether he ever lets go of his unbelief. The two groundskeepers may be the biggest caricatures, being the rude and morose types who already know that no good can come of staying overnight.
One thing that makes TH a little unusual among haunted house stories is that no ghosts ever become visible, to the audience or any characters. Nor does anything fly through the air. Most cues are auditory, and the visual effects rarely go beyond slightly jiggling doorknobs. I'd say this helps the fear factor along, as there's still a little room to wonder whether or not things are as they seem. Also helping are the minor ways in which Hill House defies conventions of architecture; everything is said to be just a little off, which may contribute to visitors getting lost as they move around.
If only the makers knew to keep up the subtlety, at least until act 3. Many early parts come across as melodramatic, and not just with Nell overreacting. I'm not convinced that all the elements spell a coherent native where the spirits are concerned. I'll also note that the studio made some pretty big oversights in its attempt to make England look like New England.
Nevertheless, at its most effective, TH made me feel as if I were right there in Hill House, physically cold and justifiably tensed up. That's reason enough to recommend it.
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