The Uninvited (2009/I)

Directors:

Charles Guard
Thomas Guard

Writers (WGA):

Craig Rosenberg (screenplay) and
Doug Miro (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

30 January 2009 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Fear moves in

Plot:

Anna Rydell returns home to her sister (and best friend) Alex after a stint in a mental hospital, though her recovery is jeopardized thanks to her cruel stepmother, aloof father, and the presence of a ghost in their home.

Plot Keywords:

Nurse | Boathouse | Forest | Evil Stepmother | Family Relationships

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Emily Browning	...	Anna
Arielle Kebbel	...	Alex
David Strathairn	...	Steven
Elizabeth Banks	...	Rachel Summers
Maya Massar	...	Mom
Kevin McNulty	...	Sheriff Emery
Jesse Moss	...	Matthew Hendricks
Dean Paul Gibson	...	Dr. Silberling
Don S. Davis	...	Mr. Henson
Lex Burnham	...	Iris Wright
Matthew Bristol	...	David Wright
Danny Bristol	...	Samuel Wright
Heather Doerksen	...	Mildred Kemp
Alf Humphreys	...	Priest (as Alfred E. Humphreys)
Ryan Cowie	...	Orderly #1

Also Known As:

A Tale of Two Sisters (USA) (working title)
Apparition (USA) (working title)
Der Fluch der zwei Schwestern (Germany)
Les intrus (Canada: French title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for violent and disturbing images, thematic material, sexual content, language and teen drinking.

Runtime:

87 min

Country:

USA | Canada | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | SDDS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (certificate #44547) | UK:15 | Australia:MA | Netherlands:16 | Singapore:NC-16 | Portugal:M/12 | South Korea:15 | Ireland:16 | Singapore:PG (edited version) | Sweden:15 | Germany:16 | France:U (with warning) | Mexico:B | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-15

Filming Locations:

Bowen Island, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

DreamWorks SKG

Trivia:

In the movie, Anna is meant to be fourteen/fifteen years old - in reality, Emily Browning was twenty years old at the time of filming.

Goofs:

Continuity: Near the end when Rachel has brought Anna back from the sheriff's office and flings her on her bed, her arms land so they are laying above her head. In the next shot when Rachel has her back turned, Anna's arms are at her sides even though she hasn't moved. When Rachel turns around again, Anna's arms are again over her head.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Matt: I love you... I have a condom.

Movie Connections:

References The Other (1972)

Soundtrack:

The Songs That We Sing

A competent horror flick that has potential

Synopsis:Young Anna (Emily Browning) returns to her home after spending time in a mental hospital due to a tragic incident involving her family the year before. Upon her return she finds that a woman (Elizabeth Banks) has become her fathers new interest. Anna neither likes nor trusts the new woman and sets out to uncover just who exactly the woman really is.

About 3/4 of the way through this movie, I began to feel disappointed that this film did not live up to my expectations. Yes there were plenty of scares and all around "jumpy" moments. I even had to close my eyes a couple of times against what I knew was coming. But none of these were things I haven't seen before. Even the storyline was recycled from a dozen or so wicked stepmother films. Nothing new there. Ghosts, cemeteries, evil character eavesdropping, stock characters that don't have a clue of what is going on right in front of their face. This film contains all of these. But I'm not sure that the placement of such clichéd plot devices wasn't intentional. And as the film finally reached the ending, which I never saw coming, I realized that all these clichés actually worked in favor of what the plot was to reveal. The predictability of the story up until the ending is what lulled me into a sense of passivity; a sense that I didn't need to be looking for hidden signals or an indication that all was not as it seemed. And in doing that, I have to say that I look back and see that this film is actually better than I expected. The ending twist makes sense and if there are any plot holes that would make such a twist unfeasible, then I can't recall them. If they're there, they must be very minor.

This film could have been better than it was even still. In light of the surprise ending, it feels as if the whole storyline was a tad too rushed. If there had been an additional twenty minutes or so to really delve into the characters lives and thoughts, particularly Annas, then I think it would have made a bigger impact. It seemed like we were kind of thrown into the middle of a situation that already "was" without having a period of getting acquainted with the family. That being said though, I would recommend this film to any fan of suspense/horror films. The cinematography is stylish and the atmosphere is genuinely spooky. I can think of a lot worse ways to spend a couple hours.

My rating: 6.8/10