LogFAQs > #979888227

Inviso - This was an okay movie. It started slow (other than the REALLY cheesy with the almost comical opening scene of a guy watching his family get run over by a snow plow while hes trapped in a phone booth in the middle of nowhere), but around the middle of the movie, I started to get interested. Ive seen enough haunting or exorcism films to be intrigued by a movie where the ghost doesnt seem inherently maliciousat least at the start. This is just a murdered child that seeks justice for his death, and the general investigative aspect of the film was really interesting to me. From the sance to the library, to the map records, I liked watching our main character trying to piece together the events that led to his house becoming haunted. And its all great, right up until he finds the medallion. Thats when the film kinda loses me a little bit.

The third act of the film revolves around the revelation that Joseph was the son of a wealthy industrialist in the early 1900s, but he was also sickly and unlikely to live to adulthoodso his father killed him and adopted an orphan boy as his replacement. That orphan grew up to be a powerful senator, so theres this whole subplot about the senator abusing his power out of fear of being blackmailed, complete with a cop getting killed supernaturally, and the ghost of child Joseph suddenly turns more classically evil for a haunting ghost, and winds up attacking the main character, his partner, and killing the senator while burning the house down. The movie just shifts direction far too aggressively at the end, and it led to a less enjoyable finale for me.

Rockus - A pretty traditional haunted house film, almost stubbornly old fashioned. But there are some nice moments that spice things up like a neat little stop motion shot after they dig up the remains in the spot of the old well and some big pyrotechnics in the finale. It mostly unfolds like a pretty solid drama. There are some dense plot exposition dumps at one point but theyre thankfully delivered right before the climax to get them out of the way as not to clutter things up in the final twenty minutes or so. George C. Scott is rather good in it and it ended up being a pretty solid ghost movie. A satisfying watch.

Seginustemple - I appreciate the old-school nature of this one, straightforward haunted house fare that isn't meta or tongue-in-cheek, no cheap scares or dazzling with effects. It's all very stately and serious...maybe a little stale. George C. Scott is a pro, almost too cool in the lead role. I wonder if someone who comes off a little more vulnerable could be more effective. The first half is promising and includes a fantastic seance the movie can hang its hat on, but the last half gets bogged down trying to get to the bottom of the ghost child's story...which leads to an adopted surrogate, and wrong kid died, but ultimately I just don't care that the rich old guy turns out to be a false heir because he already lived his life and none of this was really his fault anyway. What was the point of punishing him at the end? The drama of that is lost on me.

Johnbobb - You know, the moment this movie started, I saw the happy family and thought "this is gonna be one of those horror movies that kills off the kid, huh? They did not miss a beat. The Changeling builds a little slowly and dryly at times, but when the creepiness hits, it hits hard. Russell screaming up at the empty house while the doors slam that he's done all he could really cements how effective it is as a haunted house

Fortybelowsummer - Gah, why couldnt this have been made in 1979. Just kidding, I had seen it before anyway and its not that bad although I anticipate it staying in my bottom five. You cant go wrong with a big ol haunted house, and this one comes complete with a creepy kiddy wheelchair in the attic. Theres a decent amount of suspense and scary imagery as its revealed what the deal is with the ominous goings-on at the house. I watched this and Exorcist III in the same week and it made me realize that George C. Scott is the man. He has a presence that elevates whatever hes in. The thing is though, here hes so somber, subdued, and matter of fact in his investigation that it kind of takes away any real sense of peril. I never felt that worried for him, that he faced any danger that was a true mortal threat. The way the mystery unravels is also pretty outlandish and the whole thing left me feeling underwhelmed overall. This is one of those movies that seems to have overwhelming positive reactions, but I just dont see it.

Snake - So, fake horror fanatic alert here, but I had never actually seen this film before this project. And well - it was underwhelming after hyping it up in my head for so long. The Changeling aspires to be a classic haunted house horror, but ultimately fumbles the scares with a slow pace and a strangely detached protagonist. The pacing here is glacial, and many of the events are extremely mundane. Slow burn films have to be executed to perfection otherwise they just end up being bore-fests like The Changeling. I never felt like John Russell was in peril, which lessens the film's impact, as he never feels truly scared, approaching the ghostly activity with a professorial curiosity that undermines all the tension that gets set up at every turn. This is probably scary if this is the first haunted house movie youve ever seen in your life, but otherwise, I rather think this is a film better left in the dusty attic of the 80s.