By Jason Haskins
I'm a sucker for ghost movies-but the good ones are hard to come by. The last really good ghost story movie was the Guillermo del Toro-produced The Orphanage from 2007, dammit. Thankfully I've gone back to my trusty old movie shelf and dug up a forgotten gem from 2001 (has it been that long already) called The Others starring Nicole Kidman, produced by then-hubby Tom Cruise, and directed by Open Your Eyes helmer (remade into Cruise's Vanilla Sky) Alejandro Amenábar. Whew--let's get started.
The Others takes place in 1945 on the island of Jersey where a young mother lives with her two photosensitive children in a darkened mansion--under her iron-tight religious ideals and policies that make it so that they never see the light of day due to their condition, which could hurt them if any light touches their skin. She hires three servants to help take care of the property and her children as she awaits the return of her dear husband from World War II when strange things start happening in the house. Things that go creep in the night are awakened, and this family will never be the same.
Nicole Kidman plays the principle role of mother Grace and does a phenomenal job. This was back in the day when she could really carry a movie. She's forceful and intimidating with the children and it's hard to see from her perspective the whole film, but the amount of dedication she has to the role is astounding. You truly believe she is the mother of these children despite her overprotection and crazy rules.
I'm not a big fan of child actors (save for the eighties breed), but these little kids really had the cojones in this picture where they aren't just merely playing scared, but look the part and give decent performances while they're at it. It's truly a shame they didn't go on to do anything else extraordinary because they really showed some powerful acting chops here opposite Kidman.
Alejandro Amenabar is a director that's quite popular around the cinematic water cooler, but I've only honestly seenOpen Your Eyes, which I dug (but liked the American remake better *bracing for impact of tomatoes*). The Othersis moody and atmospheric proving that a PG-13 horror/suspense movie doesn't need to have gratuitous amounts of whatever it is they have to make a genuinely creepy picture. The whole atmosphere of the film is thick and foggy like the mist that surrounds the mansion they live in and he has a way of making you creeped out even in the day time around the property without tricks or tomfoolery.
This isn't a straight-up horror picture. The whole "ghost story" aspect of it is handled quite well and doesn't have a cheap interior that makes you feel cheated by lame jump attempts or lame music (which I assure you is quite solid as it was composed by Amenabar himself). The relationships take center stage here and the drama isn't ridiculous or prideful--giving you a perfect sense of the period as well as the degradation of the mother's calm façade.
What was famous about this movie was the epic story with the originality of it and the completely bewildering ending that will make you question the very foundations of ghost stories in general. I remembered really digging this movie as a kid and it still holds up well cinematically and entertainment wise, but I can't help but feel that the good experience of it lessens every time I watch it since I know what to expect. It's as if all of the fun gets soaked up with each viewing. That's not to say it's a bad movie, but that it doesn't have too high of a replay value outside of watching it with someone who has never seen it before.
I have no idea why this doesn't make a huge splash on peoples' top horror/suspense lists as much as it did when it came out, but I'm bringing The Others back. It's a really solid film with an amazing concept and has one of the creepiest set ups in movie history. It's a high-caliber "horror" movie (if you'd call it that) with an awesome premise that is sure to frighten you and make you think about what you see. Nicole Kidman was perfectly cast and gives a performance that is much different, in my opinion, than anything else she's done before. If you've never seen this, then give it a whirl--it's about damn time.
4 out of 5 stars
More Amenabar at Cinemecca:
The Sea Inside (2004)
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