The Uninvited (2009)

***Haunting mysteries on the coast of Maine with Emily Browning and Elizabeth Banks***

After her mother dies in a tragedy, a teen girl (Emily Browning) is sent to a mental hospital. Upon returning to her father’s mansion on the coast of Maine, she reunites with her older sister (Arielle Kebbel) and tries to get along with her dad’s new girlfriend (Elizabeth Banks), her mother’s former nurse, who appears to be taking over. David Strathairn plays the father, a successful author.

“The Uninvited” (2009) is a mystery/horror that combines elements of “The Sixth Sense” (1999), “Half Light” (2006) and “The Ring” (2002), although it’s a little more subdued than the latter. If you like the haunting tone of those movies and the spectacular locations of the latter two, you’ll appreciate it. Browning with her ultra-cute face was 20 during filming, but looks 14. Meanwhile Banks is effective as the biyatch gold-digger and Strathairn is convincing as the clueless father.

The story plays out in a too-predicable manner. If you saw the trailer beforehand it basically tells you everything you need to know. But not really: The last 15 minutes pulls the rug out with some surprising revelations. I heard there was a twist before viewing and went over various possibilities in my mind while watching, but the movie fooled me. Great job on this front. Not everything is as it appears. I’d say more, but I don’t want to spoil it.

My relatively high rating is due to the lingering power of the film's message on individual perception. It's potent and applicable stuff, expertly executed.

The film doesn’t overstay its welcome at a mere 1 hour, 27 minutes. It wasn’t shot in the Northeast, however, but obviously British Columbia (Bowen Island). It’s an American remake of the Korean film “A Tale of Two Sisters” (2003).

GRADE: B+/A-

We survive by remembering. But sometimes we survive by forgetting.

The Uninvited is directed by The Guard Brothers and written by Craig Rosenberg, Doug Miro and Carlo Bernard. It stars Emily Browning, Elizabeth Banks, Arielle Kebbel and David Strathairn. Music is by Christopher Young and cinematography by Daniel Landin.

A remake of Korean film "A Tale of Two Sisters", plot finds Anna (Browning) released from a psychiatric institution, she was placed in there following a suicide attempt when her terminally mother died in a boathouse fire. Once home she begins to encounter bad dreams and supernatural visions...

It was yet another American remake of an Asian horror film, at a time when doing so was in vogue, unfortunately this is one of the weakest of the bunch. Not exactly terrible, it's just so unoriginal and devoid of any suspense or chiiling atmosphere. In fact it feels more like a murder mystery piece but with a couple of spook scenes inserted into the narrative. Pic is predominantly saved by the finale, where the story unravels with some genuine surprises. Cast are all fine in perfs, even if Strathairn is utterly wasted in his under written role. 5/10

Okay psychological thriller featuring a fine performance by Emily Browning. This is one I saw back in '09 and pretty much feel the same way I did back then. Nothing great but worth checking out I suppose. **3.0/5**

Hmmm. There isn't really much worth saying about this truly mediocre horror effort. "Anna" (Emily Browning) is having a torrid time after her mother died in a fire. Having tried suicide, she is placed in an institution from where, after ten long months, she is released back into the care of her father. "Steven" (David Strathairn) is pretty ill-equipped to deal with this young woman, and things are not helped by the fact that in the intervening months, he has married her late mum's former nurse "Rachel" (Elizabeth Banks). It's fair to say that this new step-mother/daughter relationship isn't a rip-roaring success, and after a while "Anna" and her sister "Alex" (Arielle Kebbel) begin to suspect that perhaps their mother's death may not have been as accidental as everyone thought. The former girl's beliefs being fuelled by what she thinks are beyond-the-grave visitations from their wronged mother. This film presents a sort of clunky amalgam of detective story and mystic horror with a fair degree of family melodrama thrown in. The acting is very by-the-numbers and there is way too much wordy dialogue and nowhere near enough by way of menace before an ending that isn't quite what I was expecting. Somehow, though, I was expecting that! There had to be something a little quirky about this otherwise procedural affair, else why bother to adapt it from the original Korean "Tale of Two Sisters" (2003)? It's reasonably well produced, the effects are adequate and it has a pace that keeps it from stalling, but it really could have been doing with a bit more emphasis on the characterisations and a darker, more sinister execution of the plot.