Rent The Others (2001)

House Broken - The Others review by Steve

In the post millennium horror boom, many have mastered the look, but few hitched their technique to a story as spookily satisfying... This is old fashioned gothic melodrama; it's Henry James' The Turn of the Screw (1898), but with an extra spine-chilling twist.

In Jersey after WWII, a mother lives alone with her two children because her husband never returned from the front, and her fractured psyche is disturbed by apparent occult visitations. Nicole Kidman's brittle froideur makes her ideal casting as the neurotic widow.

There's a quality support cast with standout child performances (James Bentley, Alakina Mann) and especially Fionnula Flanagan as the sympathetic/insidious housekeeper in the old dark house of shadows, where the doors and curtains must always be closed.

Writer-director Alejandro Amenábar obviously owns an interesting collection of gothic horror and contributes many inspired flourishes of his own. He reveals the dark secrets cautiously, and by degrees; this is a ghost story that chills through eerie insinuation.

Tense Ghost Story With A Twist - The Others review by GI

A stylish and effective haunted house story that is probably influenced by Henry James The Turn Of The Screw and its various film adaptations. A fog bound, isolated old country house scenario with creepy shadows and subtle happenings to keep the tension switched on. However the film has a neat twist that sets it apart from your usual film of this kind and it avoids unnecessary sudden jump scares. Nicole Kidman is excellent here as Grace, a mother who awaits in her Jersey country mansion with her two young children, Ann (Alakina Mann) and Nicholas (James Bentley) for the return of her husband who's been away fighting in the Second World War, which is now over. The arrival, unannounced, of three new servants begins a chain of spooky events leading Grace to believe the house is haunted. The mystery element of the narrative is neatly scripted and keeps you guessing and even if you have previously seen this film it's worth another look in order to spot the subtle hints that litter throughout. A solidly entertaining ghost film that is clever and well presented.

Agree with AD but not entirely - The Others review by Cato

I very much agree with AD's first two paragraphs, but the actress playing the part of the Irish nanny was one Fionnula Flanagan, which maybe gives the game away as to why she had her accent.