The Others (2001)
I had watched this film years ago for the first time and raved about it as it was one of the only ghost films that did not have a single jump scare. Rewatching it, I still stand by that. This movie was more unsettling due to the twist. We are so used to being on the living side of a haunting, which makes this one extremely unique in its POV.
In this movie, we follow Grace and her children. Grace is a bit over the top with forcing her kids to be Catholic. She is a god-fearing woman, but she overexerts her confidence on her children and her servants. I am not sure if this is due to her own denial or ignorance, either. She is actually rather close-minded compared to the other spirits in the house. The viewer takes this as her family and servants are alive, and previous tenants haunt the home. With Grace's religious beliefs, she does not believe in hauntings or ghosts. The movie is really her struggle to come to terms with what happened to her and what she did to her family.
One thing that hurt me for Grace was Charles. In the end, it is fair to assume they found out he died in the war, then Grace lost it, killing her children and herself. Charles's spirit appearing made little to no sense. If he died violently in combat, then it would only make sense his spirit lingers where he died. So, did he die on their property? Also, I didn't particularly appreciate that it was implied he left his wife under the excuse of war because he didn't want to be with her anymore. I am super old fashioned when it comes to marriage as a commitment, through thick and thin. You're not always going to love what your partner does, but that is the point of two people committing to one another. You get through it. I am not a fan of how crappy media makes marriage commitment seem.
When his spirit is in the home, he lays around in bed. That is until Anne comes to tell him what happened to his family. I guess that is meant to be his own closure and why his spirit disappeared after hearing the story? He claims to have to go back to the front even after his wife screams the war is over. This part made me think about losing Logan. I hate that it tugged at my heartstrings the way it did.
Outside of the no jumpscares, the idea we are on the side of the ghost is taboo. They can't seem to see the living either. It is like those living are spirits as well. I cannot think of any movies that replicate this one in that sense. The film is very unique because of this twist. The seance scene at the end was a great way to reveal this. We saw both sides of it. However, Grace could now see the people as she was finally coming to terms with her reality - the one where she is dead. I also like how there seem to be two alternate houses in existence—one modern with the living family, and the other with Grace's. I enjoyed the idea of the curtains being removed and Grace tearing her house apart, unable to find them since they are in the living land. I guess the Insidious films also halfway make this reality difference, just nowhere near as excellent as this film did. Do not get me started on the Insidious series. We would be here all week.
It seems that Grace and Nicholas are the only ones in the house, unaware of their reality. Anne can see the living, so, in some sense, she is aware without expressing it. Lydia, Mr. Tuttle, and Mrs. Mills know they are dead and hide their gravestones until the end. The confusing thing here is Anne is pictured to believe the servants are the ghosts, not the family. So, while she has some awareness of the reality of being dead, she is not fully aware. The ending of the living family leaving due to the haunting seems realistic. The house is enormous. Whoever buys it has money. Another disturbing idea is now the family is hyperaware of being dead. Grace makes them repeat that it is their house. It gives me Beetlejuice vibes, without the comedy, on wondering how far they will go to keep more of "The Others" out of their home.
Alexis, you must be braver than me, because the first glimpse of the blind medium in the seance made me jump!
ReplyDeleteYou say, "...wondering how far they will go to keep more of "The Others" out of their home." I wonder the same thing! The next family to move into the house will face a formidable enemy in Grace. She is already determined to have the place to herself.
You cleared up a mystery for me when you said, "I enjoyed the idea of the curtains being removed and Grace tearing her house apart, unable to find them since they are in the living land." I was confused when the living residents were able to remove the curtains. But if we think of the house being sort of split, and existing in two dimensions at once, it works. The curtains are taken from Grace's world and hidden in the world of the living.
It is certainly possible that Grace found out that Charles died on the war front. However, in my opinion, the story would still work even if she were unaware. She felt abandoned by him, and she was alone with two disabled children. For someone with violent tendencies like Grace (telling the children that they would burn forever in Children's Limbo was sadistic), this could have been enough to drive her over the edge.
Alexis - No jump scares? Scaredy Cat must admit this movie gave me one of my worst jump scares in a movie theater (in front of witnesses, no less). It's the scene where Grace searches the house and a face suddenly appears in the shadows over her shoulder (revealed as a painting a few seconds later in her lamplight). I about jumped out of my skin and actually squealed quite loudly in the theater. Very embarrassing. But I wasn't the only one!
ReplyDeleteMy impression is that Anne remembers her mother's attack, but doesn't realize any of them are dead. Maybe she suspects, but she's in denial. Like mother, like daughter.
I wasn't a huge fan of the Charles character/scenes either. But it seems you feel there's a hard and fast rule that a ghost can't appear anywhere other than the location/area where they died? That rule might be explicitly stated in some works of fiction, but that is neither the reality of real hauntings nor a hard and fast rule that must be adhered to in all fictional ghost stories. Many mothers and widows report visitations from loved ones who died on the front lines of war. Real ghost investigators are quick to warn that a spirit can attach to a living person and follow them home. And I myself experienced two visitations from spirits who died far away from where I encountered them. There are fictional examples as well. What pops into my head is Edith Wharton's Afterward. Yes, a ghost can attach/linger to the place where they died. They can also attach to a certain person to deliver a message or seek revenge. They may also attach to a place where they were most happy in life. So the fact that Charles shows up in the otherworldly "limbo" version of the family estate where his wife and kids are struggling to come to terms with the afterlife doesn't seem so impossible to me, even if he died on the front lines.
"I enjoyed the idea of the curtains being removed and Grace tearing her house apart, unable to find them since they are in the living land." Is that what happened to them? I assumed they got thrown away by the living and therefore were no longer on the property and she can't leave that.
ReplyDeleteI loved the ending with them chanting that it was their house and leaving the audience wondering what will happen to the next family to move in. This is especially interesting when we think about the fact that the Mills didn't seem to mind coexisting with the living. In fact, they were probably coexisting with Grace's family without them even knowing it when they were alive.
p.s. sorry this is late, I lost track of the day
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