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Review: The Haunting in Connecticut

Succeeds despite eye-rollers
By SHAULA CLARK  |  April 1, 2009
2.5 2.5 Stars


VIDEO: The trailer for The Haunting in Connecticut

It's no shocker that The Haunting in Connecticut — a film inspired by the "true tale" of a family who stir up a nest of spooks when they move into a former mortuary — offers many a groan-worthy moment: the thrills are cheap, the opening credits are in Papyrus font (the fastest way to draw snorts from a theater full of Emerson students), and the expositional wad of a scene where two kids dig up the house's gory occult past at the library is more Scooby-Doo than Amityville

Despite these eye rollers, The Haunting proves enjoyable horror fare. Director Peter Cornwell's first feature-length outing merrily mashes up The Shining and Poltergeist, tossing in gobs of gurgling apparitions, fiery ectoplasm, and one particularly nasty eyelid flensing. T

he icing on this creepshow cake are the fine performances from Virginia Madsen as a God-fearing mom and Kyle Gallner as her tormented, cancer-stricken son.

Related: Review: Friday the 13th (2009), Review: Drag Me To Hell, Review: Timecrimes, More more >
  Topics: Reviews , Scooby Doo, Virginia Madsen, Virginia Madsen,  More more >
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ARTICLES BY SHAULA CLARK
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