1980 Directed by Peter Medak
After a tragic event happens, composer John Russell moves to Seattle to try to overcome it and build a new and peaceful life in a lonely big house that has been uninhabited for many years. But, soon after, the obscure history of such an old mansion and his own past begin to haunt him.
George C. Scott Trish Van Devere Melvyn Douglas John Colicos Barry Morse Madeleine Sherwood Helen Burns Eric Christmas Frances Hyland Ruth Springford James B. Douglas J. Kenneth Campbell Roberta Maxwell Bernard Behrens Jean Marsh Chris Gampel Voldi Way Michelle Martin Janne Mortil Terence Kelly Robert Monroe Hagan Beggs Anna Hagan Antonia Rey Sammy Smith Paul Rothery Bruce MacLeod Fred Latremouille David Peevers Show All…
El intermediario del diablo, A Troca, O Intermediário do Diabo
Horror, the undead and monster classics Intense violence and sexual transgression Thrillers and murder mysteries scary, horror, creepy, supernatural or frighten horror, creepy, eerie, blood or gothic horror, creepy, frighten, eerie or chilling horror, gory, scary, killing or gruesome comedy, funny, horror, humor or spooky Show All…
Love to see characters in horror movies going to the library to do research! Microfiche! Old maps!
Living in a fairly old house for a decent chunk of my life, Haunted house movies were something I grew up loving right into my teen years, then I dunno what happened but I just couldn’t jive with them anymore... until recently, and The Changeling was a well regarded classic that I’ve seen a handful of times, always liked, but never really loved... until now.
I’ve been wanting to revisit this for quite a while, luckily I held out for the Severin Blu-ray because this time around I really got lost in this atmospheric retribution haunt and all of its ambient whispers and large airy corridors. George C. Scott kills it (as always) as John Russell, I felt for him—that opening…
Exquisite haunted house chiller that never loses its effect with me. Super creepy house, absolutely perfect atmosphere, and great cast led by George C. Scott doing what he does best, which is shouting at everyone.
This is a super slow burn, but if you’re up for it then you will be rewarded with some wonderfully chilling scenes and an intriguing story that holds your interest until the end. One of the top 10 haunted house horror films of all time for sure.
Fun fact: George C. Scott and Trish Van Devere were real life husband and wife!
a very gracefully-stylized haunted house movie with impeccable control over its eerie, lonely, grief-stricken atmosphere. so many fantastic slow zooms, shadowy corridor compositions, creepy handheld POV tracking shots, victorian architecture observed in beautiful and strange wide-angle, overhead images. all of this further complimented by the intentionally quiet, windy sound design and spare piano score that has this ghostly twinkling lullaby quality to it emphasizing the feelings of emptiness and loss. really spectacular feel-bad revenge climax as well. completes the george c. scott trilogy (including Hardcore and The Exorcist III) of catholic grandpa's from the midwest or upstate NY going detective mode over a history of violent american behavior.
Hoop-Tober, Film 2 of 31:
Hmmm...
Hmmmmmm......
Hmmmmmmmmmmmm............
Well, the only way that I can properly state my opinion on this film is by saying that it both did, and didn't, meet my expectations. I went in looking for un ultra-creepy, atmospheric, dread-driven haunted house flick, and I got one... kinda. See, the first two acts of the film were incredible. It was a deeply saddening tale of a grief-stricken man, and I wasn't even sure if what I was seeing and hearing, in terms of the haunting, was real, because I couldn't be sure of the man's sanity after the tragedy that he was forced to endure. The cinematography and the editing were both stellar; rarely do you see…
An outstanding supernatural thriller with heavy mystery elements starring George C. Scott. It moves at a fairly slow pace but that works out very well. I really loved the (haunted) house that most of this movie took place in; it was basically a character onto itself. Scott was fun to watch too, despite him kind of being one-note here and not being very expressive. Lots of eerie atmosphere as well.
Great times watching this with Michelle.
A careless look. An open-mouthed stare. A hopeless moment before your entire world is turned upside down. The opening 2 minutes of The Changeling is traumatic stuff, and I don't think I was ready for it.
Hungarian born Peter Medak's 1980 tale of horrendously tormented struggle is a high watermark in his career, and hits really hard. With a terrific performance from George C. Scott, a man with a throatful of gravel and burnt ashes and for me, the greatest ever Ebenezer Scrooge, The Changeling is a slow burning and extremely haunting experience.
What starts out as a desperately tragic drama descends into a tale of painful memories and uninvited dreams set inside a gorgeous old country house. Soft piano…
George C Scott stars as a guy who moves into a giant spooky mansion after his wife and child die tragically, as one does. A truly effective and spooky ghost movie that captures the idea of the haunted house as a repository for family and childhood trauma and the "ghost" as the memories of a primal violation or act of violence that have no where to go absent any true reckoning. Left unacknowledged or covered up the stain of the act itself seeps into the walls of the place where it happened like the pores of your skin and seeks to replay its trauma over and over again.
In the British ghost story tradition, the ghost is usually an act…
”Whatever’s to be done, has to be done by me.”
George C. Scott portrays a haunted man in a haunted house and he carries the entire movie with an outstanding performance. Just his stone cold look during the seance is absolute perfection.
As for the story, it’s one that’s been told a thousand times. Sometimes better and sometimes much much worse. This one features some really well crafted visuals, and the wheels come off the cart quite nicely in the third act.
BONUS POINTS for a killer opening, which plows the story into motion.
”Alright, how much do you want for this farce that you’ve concocted?”
1980 In Review - December
Composer John Russell (George C. Scott) is vacationing with his family when a car accident kills his wife and daughter. Distraught with grief, Russell leaves his home in New York City for a giant, secluded house near Seattle. Soon Russell starts to feel the presence of a ghost, a boy who drowned in the bathtub there. Russell seeks the assistance of Claire Norman (Trish Van Devere), who led him to the house initially, in uncovering the secrets of the boy's death.
This is an interesting, suspenseful and horrifying story that is partially based on real events which supposedly took place at a house in Denver. It’s a classic ghost story, almost a classic of the…
HoopTober 8
Part XXX: The Changeling (2/2 Haunted House)
Feeling more like a prestige horror in the vein of The Exorcist than anything else dominating the slasher landscape of the early-80s, The Changeling is a beautifully shot, engrossing, ghostly chiller from director Peter Medak.
It's an interesting film in how you think it will go one way and yet it turns into something quite different.
Opening with a real tragedy, and knowing this is a ghost story, we suspect that the story will centre around George C. Scott's character John, coping with his grief and maybe some "visitors" along the way.
But the story doesn't travel that all-too-familiar path. Instead, John moves to Seattle in an attempt to pull himself…
When George C. Scott was at his most intense on screen, he seemed to be a vessel of barely contained rage. His fury might spin in any direction–a more immediate and dangerous threat than some ectoplasm in the attic.
Casting Scott in horror movies like The Changeling and Exorcist III was a bit of a risk since few actors had such a strong sense of authority on screen. You don’t get a sense that he is in any danger in these movies, just really pissed off. Sensible ghosts and demons would leave well enough alone.
“Don’t make me come up there.”
But old George does have to go up there. And watching him get increasingly pissed about it is the major reason to catch The Changeling. It’s a basic haunted-house story, elevated by Scott’s presence and the wintry Pacific Northwest atmosphere. It has enough scary and intense moments to make it quite watchable and entertaining.
