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The Others (2001)
Rate:
3
Viewed:
6/25
6/25:
Prior to seeing The Others, I had suspicions that it would be the 100th whatever adaptation of
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James.
The Innocents and The Nightcomers,
anyone? The opening credits told me no by indicating that Alejandro Amenábar produced an original screenplay
on his own. Still, I didn't believe it, even after watching the film for half an hour which confirmed what I
had expected: a woman and two kids with servants and "spirits" on a huge English estate. Then slowly, the
ripped-off parts went away as it began to resemble a different version of
Burnt Offerings.
I couldn't help but notice how superior Dan Curtis' picture was given the similarities. Sometimes hysterical,
Nicole Kidman has nothing on Karen Black. Christopher Eccleston is totally weak compared to Oliver Reed.
Burgess Meredith and Eileen Heckart have a brief appearance at the beginning to set up the spooky tone whileas
Fionnula Flanagan and Eric Sykes are ineffective throughout. The children are annoying, but in
Burnt Offerings, one son is simply set aside until needed for pivotal
scenes. As an added bonus, Bette Davis is the more the merrier.
Remember when Grace Stewart (Nicole Kidman) walked outside and met her husband in some fog? That's the house
stopping her from leaving the premises. The similar thing happened with Oliver Reed's character when he got
blocked by trees and vines. How about Grace jumping on some old woman who took the place of her daughter?
Oliver Reed did the same to the son in the pool. Pictures of former residents? It's been covered in
Burnt Offerings. However, the last twenty minutes of The Others
is different as it's closer to the revelation in Carnival of Souls.
Why Burnt Offerings worked so well for a haunted house picture is it
had plenty of strong thespians who made effective use of the script by dramatizing the little things. As
a result, the suspense became palpable. In The Others, Nicole Kidman just can't be listening to noises,
yelling, and running around with a shotgun as if she's Annie Oakley; that's bad showmanship with cheap cinema
tricks although it's impressive that no special effects in the form of CGI were used. Worse, she isn't a good
actress to begin with.
It also doesn't have signature movie moments; anyone who has seen
Burnt Offerings will never forget Anthony James as the chauffeur. Had
50% of the content been taken out in The Others, it wouldn't have mattered; they don't do anything but
waste time despite the pleasant cinematography. I know this is moot, but there's absolutely no way
that Jersey, an island in the English Channel, was untouched by the Nazis during WWII. Its land area is 46.2
square miles which is only a fraction of Rhode Island, the smallest state in the United States (1,034 square
miles).
All in all, I'm convinced that Alejandro Amenábar used Burnt Offerings
as the basis of The Others while borrowing lots of elements from
The Innocents and
Carnival of Souls.