The Haunting (1963)

One Halloween night many years ago -- back when I was in fourth grade actually -- my mom and I sat down in her bedroom to watch a horror movie that she had seen listed in the TV Guide. The movie was titled The Haunting, and, at that time, was something my little brother and my dad would never find themselves watching thus we were forced into the back bedroom while they had the main family room TV. It was eleven years before I ever watched the movie again, not because I didn’t like it, but because it simply scared the crap out of me to the point where I never went out of my way to see it. That night it was my little brother’s second viewing as well, my mom and he having seen it a few years earlier one October night while I was at a Civil War reenactment. Together the three of us watched it in the basement family room, our eyes having spotted it earlier in the day as being shown on Turner Classic Movies that night, all of us somewhat apprehensive to be sitting down with a movie that had scared us all so badly. As with my first viewing, the movie scared me to the point where I couldn’t sleep that night, the various scenes playing themselves over and over again in my mind without stop as I lay in my dark basement bedroom. Nine years passed before I watched the movie again, my masochistic mind deciding I had to sit down in my empty apartment one October night just before Halloween and view it -- my little brother helped by loaning me his DVD copy, somewhat gleefully. That was last night. While watching it a stupid leftover Happy Birthday balloon that had pretty much been deflated rose up next to my couch before my eyes thanks to my heater kicking in and caused me to scream, my two sleeping cats using my chest as a springboard to flee. After that I couldn’t calm down, and once the movie was over I had no choice but to leave the lights on while trying to sleep.

The Haunting, which was based on the 1959 book The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, is the story of four people who decide to stay in the legendary Hill House in order to bear witness to and hopefully bring solid evidence of the supernatural to the scientific community. Chosen by Dr. Montague due to their past experiences with the paranormal, two women, Eleanor and Theodora, get settled into Hill House separately, their introduction to the place somewhat chilling as the housekeeper Mrs. Dudley informs them that she does not stay the night and that in the dark no one will be around to hear them scream. After that the two get lost in the offset hallways of Hill House, and then are startled by a cold spot and what may be spiritual voices, all of which stops once Dr. Montague finds them and guides them to the dinner table. Once there they meet Luke, the future heir of Hill House and disbeliever of the paranormal. Eventually the four retire to their separate rooms for the night, at which point the house decides to introduce itself. Awakened by the sound of something thumping down the hallway, Eleanor hurries into Theodora’s room. While there whatever is in the hallway turns its attention on the door, twisting the knob and pounding on the wood. Eventually it ends, and the two women find Dr. Montague and Luke, who, they discover, had been lured out of the house by what they thought was a dog. Because of this Dr. Montague decides the house was trying to separate the two pairs, a theory that chills everyone to the core. The rest of the night passes without incident, but then during the morning hours the house makes its desires of keeping Eleanor for itself known by having her name written on the walls. After that Eleanor seems to be the focus of the house’s paranormal energy as one terrifying event after another plagues the group. And then Dr. Montague’s wife decides to show up, which is when all hell breaks loose -- especially after she decides to stay in the nursery, the agreed upon evil heart of the deranged house. Will the group survive another night? Will the house’s desire to keep Eleanor within for all eternity go realized or will she escape? Only time will tell.

People often ask me why The Haunting terrifies me so much when other haunted house movies don’t, and while its hard to answer this completely, I know a part of it is because the movie never shows anything, which in turn allows the imagination to conjure up thoughts and images that are way more startling than anything a director or special effects team could ever create. In fact, showing the ghosts in any haunted house movie almost always ends the terror for me, which is why I hate this modern day filmmaker obsession with CGI. I also don’t understand why they constantly decide to show things when there are so many examples out there of how not showing the ghost, or villain, or monster right away, or ever, is far more terrifying to audiences. Another huge factor in why The Haunting is so terrifying to me is the black and white atmosphere coupled with the eerie music, the latter being more effective than the former since I have been scared by well done haunted house movies that were in color as well. Put the score of The Haunting to anything and I think people will be on edge for whatever event they are experiencing, their eyes and mind unable to override the terror of the sounds they are hearing. I know I would be. Add everything together and The Haunting becomes one of the scariest movies of all time -- in my opinion -- one that I believe every horror fan should watch at some point, preferably in October as Halloween draws near, all the lights out, in a small group or alone, minds completely ready to be scared senseless. Such an experience is not easily forgotten. I know, because many have told me they too were terrified by this movie during the first viewing and again in subsequent viewings.