Directed by The Guard Brothers
Review based upon a DVD preview screening in 2009
It’s generally quite rare when a remake of a horror film manages to surpass the original. This is especially true when Hollywood attempts to focus on works from either Europe or Asia, as in most cases the nature of the threat is intrinsically linked to that culture and therefore by default loses some of it’s effectiveness in translation. There have been exceptions, however; “The Grudge” was a better film due to the more linear approach taken with the narrative, and even “The Ring” was able to take the central conceit and retain the key scare factor. “The Uninvited” is an American remake of the Korean horror movie “A Tale Of Two Sisters”, which was a massive international hit in 2001. Does this remake manage to improve on the original flick?
“The Uninvited” focuses on Anna (Emily Browning), who as the film opens is being held in a psychiatric facility after attempting suicide. She is plagued by nightmarish visions of events leading up to the death of her terminally ill mother in a fire at the family home, seemingly unable to remember what drove her to the edge of insanity. Released on her doctor’s recommendation, she returns home to be reunited with her father Stephen (David Strathairn) and sister Alex (Arielle Kebbel). During her incarceration, Stephen has started a relationship with her mother’s former nurse Rachel (Elizabeth Banks), and although unhappy about this the sisters attempt to put on a brave face for the sake of their father. But all is not as
it seems: the ghosts of her mother and of several mysterious children visit Anna to tell her the truth about what really happened that fateful night, and as she starts to piece together the story everything seems to point to foul play. But is anyone really responsible for the murder of Anna’s mother? Is Rachel all she really seems to be? And will Anna be able to cope with the truth?The original Korean flick “A Tale Of Two Sisters” had some interesting ideas but was fundamentally flawed in the same way that the original Asian “The Grudge” was before it. Both of these contained the now frequently imitated ghostly imagery, but fell short with a confusing storyline and shallow characterisation. With “The Uninvited”, writers Craig Rosenberg, Doug Miro and Carlo Bernard take the key elements of the original and weave it into a much more believable narrative that tackle supernatural themes of loss, fear and suspicion within a plausible scenario. Closely resembling aspects of “The Grudge” and even “The Sixth Sense”, the plot builds slowly and throws in a number of red herrings to second-guess the audience and make the final twist a genuine surprise.
Directors Charles and Thomas Guard (credited here as The Guard Brothers) make their feature debut, bringing a wonderful eye for detail that expands the scope of the whole picture. The visuals are rich and lush, with bright vibrant colours during day scenes and chokingly claustrophobic darkness during the night sequences.
The ensem
ble cast is very impressive, Emily Browning in her first lead role since the children’s “Lemony Snicket” movie a clear standout. Her range is excellent, putting across all facets of the complex Anna to make her character transformation entirely believable. Elizabeth Banks also deserves praise for her unnerving portrayal of girlfriend Rachel.“The Uninvited” is a creepy horror film that contains no on-screen violence, but still manages to jangle audience nerves through slow building tension and some well handled jump scares. Even though the ghostly visions could easily come from any Japanese or Korean genre flick, they are very underused here, which makes their impact even more affecting.
Put simply, this is a great example of not only a superb remake, but most importantly a fantastic ghost story that requires the viewer to experience the fear while using their brains. “The Uninvited” is an example of the kind of subtle chiller that Hollywood could have made too predictable, but thanks to some brilliant direction, writing and performances this picture works on multiple levels and is genuinely surprising at points. Sure, we might’ve seen it all before, but this is a class act that bodes well for the futures of all those concerned.
8 out of 10
A creepily effective remake that works so much better than the original… and that’s a recommendation by itself
