#an American haunting

[fanofspooky]

Scream King - Donald Sutherland

[kennethbrangh]

DONALD SUTHERLAND in An American Haunting (2006)

[mxmoth]

FAVORITE HORROR FILMS | AN AMERICAN HAUNTING (2005) After Dark Films, Dir. Courtney Solomon Rachel Hurd-Wood, James D'Arcy, Donald Sutherland, Sissy Spacek

[therosegoldbourdoir]

"In the realm of spooky legends and eerie tales, the Bell Witch stands tall as one of America’s most chilling specters. With its roots entangled in history, this paranormal entity has captured the imaginations of countless individuals over the years. As we venture into the twentieth entry of our top 31 series, let’s unravel the enigmatic lore behind The Bell Witch and explore its portrayal in the 2005 film, “An American Haunting.” Grab your flashlight; we’re in for a spine-tingling journey."

[horrororman]

Released May 5, 2006(US).

#AnAmericanHaunting

#horror #thriller #mystery

[ghostember]

i’m your dog

[mylittlesecrethaven]

An American Haunting Came On The Other Day

I tuned back into the TV the other day and saw it on.

And it looked like a normal Halloween movie.

It was spooky.

It had Christian devil shit in it cause "oooo sPoOkY"

And it seemed interesting.

But that movie is fuuuuccckkkeeeddd up.

Spoilers below \/

So the girl being haunted was actually being raped by her dying dad?

And she imagined the entire haunting or something as a coping mechanism?

It's..... it was weird.....

(i might be wrong with some of that cause i tuned out at that part pretty fast, but like.....)

[theknightlywolfe]

Okay, that was pretty obvious and, while well acted enough, not really worth the watch.

Now onto Rise with Lucy Liu.

[knowyourbmovieactors]

OCTOBER HORROR MOVIES (DVD EDITION) #5 AN AMERICAN HAUNTING

Last time I watched a Japanese ghost story, so let's strap in for a good ol', red-blooded AMERICAN ghost story! It's my patriotic duty. I mean, "American" is right in the title!

Where that Japanese story was understated and moody, this AMERICAN story leaps right into ACTION! A girl screams and runs through the woods. The thumping, staccato music immediately overwhelms your senses. The girl grabs a knife to defend herself against an invisible ghost (presumably because those commie lib socialist DEMONCRATS took her guns away!) After that we reveal a character with a drinking problem, a creepy porcelain doll, and a couple of cheap jump scares for no reason. Seems like this AMERICAN movie is off to a solid, rip-roaring AMERICAN start!

Then someone pulls out an old parchment letter and we hear a voiceover that sounds straight out of a Civil War documentary, and, OH NO, this is actually a goddamn period piece! Well, I guess there's nothing more AMERICAN than an old-fashioned bait-and-switch.

So, here we are in early 19th century Tennessee, and it turns out this is another tired retelling of the old Bell Witch story (which is why the producers claim it's "based on true events"). The problem with trying to pass the Bell Witch off as fact is that the first book that purported to document it stands a pretty good chance of being a hoax (considering that absolutely every piece of first-hand evidence it cites has conveniently been lost to time). So, what are we left with? Basically, it's "The Exorcist" as a ponderous period drama with Donald Sutherland and Sissy Spacek, regularly interrupted with screeching jump scares.

I can't get over how extra the music is trying to be in this film. The score mostly feels like a taped-together string of 30 second orchestral bits, separated from each other by clanking, metallic stingers. This is draped liberally over every damn second of the film, and our only relief from it is the moments where the composer and the cinematographer conspire together to rip off the style of "Sleepy Hollow" (which came out only about five years before this was made). And if you thought the trend of movie dialogue being difficult to understand was a new development, I introduce this 19-year-old film to you as proof that the conspiracy goes back much further. When the dialogue is not incoherent screams, it's actors speaking in hushed tones in overblown Tennessee dialects, all while the musical score is sitting on your head and pummeling you about the ears. If ever there was a movie in need of silence, it's this one. But, I guess the score could be useful to the neurotypical as way to simulate ADHD.

"An American Haunting" is stately and dull in spite of its screaming protestations. And during that time it also manages to gloss over both the institution of slavery and the relationship between a teenage girl and man two decades older than her. This movie won't scare you to death, but it just may bore you there.

THINGS I LEARNED FROM THE DVD EXTRAS -There are five "alternate endings" included on this disc, none of which actually change the ending. They're all just more confusingly edited versions of the official ending. -In a conversation between director Courtney Solomon and Sissy Spacek, Solomon recounts how he did "internet research" to learn about the Bell Witch. He and Spacek then recount a bunch of purported facts about the story that were debunked years before this film was even made, proving that the internet was already rotting our collective brains way back in 2005. -There is a very scary wolf in the film. In behind-the-scenes footage, he looks more like a VERY GOOD BOY who is having THE BEST DAY EVER playing his favorite game, CHASE THE HORSE!

[halloweenhundreds]

An American Haunting has a great game cast to tell the story of the Bell Witch haunting in a way too 2000s manner that really works against its strengths. At least one really great sequence and flashes of excellence. Framing device was wild.

[my-midlife-crisis]

[fanofspooky]

Rest In Peace Donald Sutherland

Thank you for your phenomenal movies

[heartbreakfeelsgoodinablog]

Possession knows no bounds

[goryhorroor]

“1950s horror movies contrast radically with their 1940s predecessors. understandably – they were reflecting a whole new world. audiences wanted stories that connected directly to their lives, to the ever-expanding technology in their homes and workplaces. they also wanted horror movies that played to their fears – stoked by politicians – of the shadows that lay beyond their immediate, personal experience of the shiny american dream (applies to some of these movies).”

[comingofthedawn]

[esotericbadbitch]

Me when… me when… the identity is horror. Who are you? Can you be replicated? Is that replication you? If someone looks just like you, acts like you and is interpreted by others as you, are they you? Do your thoughts count for anything? If everything you actually think stays in your head and never comes out then you die do people grieve you? Do you respond to your name or to any name?