The Changeling (1980)

Genre: Haunted House

Source: TV (channel IFC)

Grade: A

         The first thing I thought when this movie was over was "why the heck don`t more people know about it"? I really can`t understand why this movie is as underrated and overlooked as it. This is an outstanding Haunted House movie with a plot that kept me interested and on the edge of seat. Some very suspenseful and scary scenes and not mention a outstanding cast. That has one of my favorite actors of all time playing the main character George C.Scott.

       Now for regards to the story this movie takes a slightly different approach to the Haunted House genre. By rather then being like say The Haunting or The Legend Of Hell House were everyone knows the house is haunted and why,and its all about surviving the night. The Changeling makes it so no one really seems to notice its haunted or even know why, so ends up obsessing the main character to finding out why its haunted and how to end it. When they reach the climax and you find out why the house is haunted its quite surprising and a little disturbing.
        Then like I said earlier the cast is magnificent! George C.Scott plays the main Character John  Russel, he portrays this character so good and makes him a very sympathetic character. Melvyn Douglas a veteran of the golden age of Hollywood has a more significantly then expected role in this movie. He`s a actor who I most remember for playing the hero in the 1932 horror movie The Vampire Bat, and now to see him much older and playing an antagonist was on its own a very interesting. This was also sadly to be one of his last movies to.
          Despite this movie being overlooked in my opinion its definitely not forgotten. I noticed a lot of scenes and ideas that have been "borrowed" in other movies such as the creepy seance scene was very similar to the one from this years Insidious and the frequent use of POV from the Ghost was something that's been used like wise in The Evil Dead. Stephan King has regarded this movie as being one of his favorite ghost movies and considers it to be more of a horror movie then The Haunting. Even Martin Scorsese has high regards for this movie, he even put it on his list of the 11 most scariest movies of all time.

         True this movies not the best movie in the world, but its definitely one of the best Haunted House movies i`ve seen in quite sometime. It offers some good concepts and ideas that make it stand out compared to other Haunted House and Ghost movies. The cast is great and George C. Scott is awesome, as usual. As well as a great appearance from Melvyn Douglas. So overall even if your not into all the ghost movies i`d still definitely reccomend this because its much more then just a ghost movie.