Delayed Reaction: I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House

Premise: A live-in nurse comes to realize the house she's in may be haunted.

 

I see the appeal of scares. They are easy. The effect is quick. You can appreciate a scare as soon as it happens. I'd rather have dread though. A lingering unease throughout a movie that you carry with you. That appears to be director Oz Perkins' specialty. Without realizing it, I've seen all of his movies in the last year (The Blackcoat's Daughter, Gretel & Hansel, and this movie). He is great at making me uncomfortable for 90 minutes at a time. While I didn't think any of these movies were great immediately after I watched them, they've all lingered in some way. I've come to appreciate them all over time, even though none yet have risen to "great" yet in my mind.

 

I have to start with Ruth Wilson. Her narration is just plain haunting. I had to stop the movie a couple times because the modulation of her voice along with the scoring got to me. You know how if you play low frequency sounds for a while that makes you more irritable? That's kind of how this movie is, except Wilson's narration just made me feel anxious. Her voice is a little different when she's actually acting on screen. Breathier and a bit annoying. It's very consistent though and mixes with the tone well.

 

Not much happens in the movie. In my notes, I wrote that the movie feels like someone is very slowly reading me an Edgar Allen Poe story. I only realized afterwards that the word I was searching for was 'gothic'. My only real complaint with the movie is a common one for Perkins' movies it turns out. It doesn't stick the landing. I spent 90 minutes uneasy and waiting to see where the story was going. Then, when its intent revealed itself, it was underwhelming. I was similarly underwhelmed by The Blackcoat's Daughter. Gretel & Hansel is a little better about it but still has some of that. I'm certainly watching his career with great interest now.

 

Simply for its ability to cast a spell on me, I must recommend this movie. It has some shortcomings, but the stuff it's great at more than makes up for those.

 

Verdict: Strongly Recommend