The word “horror” denotes an intense feeling of fear. In fact, horror movies are almost always defined by their ability to evoke trepidation through storylines and characterization. There is a reason why audiences cannot forget “Nightmare on Elm Street,” “Friday the 13th,” or “Halloween.” Because Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, and Michael Myers are the definition of horror, all infamous and unforgettable main characters of the previously stated movies that are inherently horrifying.
Lately, there has been a fascination in the horror film-making industry with the supernatural. Many modern-day horror films are all influenced by one basic plot of a haunted house with an unknown evil terrorizing its residents with one defining plot twist to distinguish them from one another.
This notion would be okay if the movies were actually scary. Instead, it is becoming quite monotonous and predictable, and “Winchester” is no different. One would think that a movie about the most haunted house in the world would have them at the edge of their seat covering their eyes, “Winchester”’s level of the unexpected is sincerely low. “Winchester,” while not completely terrible, is not anything to rave about.
Released Feb. 2, “Winchester: The House that Ghosts Built” is a supernatural horror film directed by Michael and Peter Spierig and written by the Spierig Brothers in conjunction with Tom Vaughan. The identical twin brothers are Australian film-directors, producers, and writers most notably known for “Undead,” “Daybreakers,” and the eighth addition to the “Saw” series, “Jigsaw.”
Seemingly based on true events, which usually adds to the eeriness of a movie, “Winchester” elaborates on the story of the Winchester Mystery House, a huge mansion located in San Jose, California.
After William Winchester’s abrupt death, Sarah Winchester, portrayed by Helen Mirren, inherits her husband’s wealth including his gun-manufacturing business. She is convinced that she is cursed by the distressed spirits of all the people who died by Winchester weaponry; the construction of the Mystery House serves as an asylum for these unforgiving ghosts. Mrs. Winchester also mourns the death of her child and is seen as unfit to run the company.
Although the film is founded upon Sarah and her ghost prison, it is far from a biographical movie. Unfortunately, this is where patriarchy is far too recognizable: the story is told from Dr. Eric Prince’s point of view, a psychiatrist played by Jason Clarke. Eric is hired to diagnose Sarah as mentally disturbed; however, ironically, he also suffers from the severe grief of losing his wife and takes self-prescribed medication to cope. Eric essentially moves into the Winchester’s part household, part uncanny foster home to assess Sarah. Residing with Sarah is her niece Marian Marriot, played by Sarah Snook and great-nephew Henry Marriott, acted by Finn Scicluna-O’Prey.
One resentful spirit takes control over young Henry, and the plot begins to unwind from there.
In addition to the plot, which as previously stated is quite unoriginal and not entirely true seeing that there is no evidence or anyone to confirm this story, the execution is also average. The cinematography is nothing out of the ordinary. Suspenseful music, sporadic sounds, creaky doors, and moody lighting are
all present in this movie. Additionally, very natural-looking supernatural beings are also seen in this motion picture.
The writers did their best with the depiction of this story. The film is even a bit humorous with such obvious ironies and foreseeable scare tactics. Not to mention, the audience is presented with a lady dressed in an all-black wedding gown with a lace vale and a young boy being possessed, how insidious of the directors. Moreover, the utilization of partially-dressed women, in the beginning, was unnecessary, and it honestly had no place in the storyline.
One noteworthy aspect of this movie is its implicit opposing view on guns which is a highly controversial topic of today. Without realizing it, the Spierig Brothers gave us an anti-gun film demonstrating how the deadly weapons can bring pain, grief, and vengeance. In light of all that is going on in America today, it is satisfying to see a film that negatively highlights the usage of guns.
“Winchester” could have been something extraordinary, but the writers fell victim to the usual routine horror film illustration. The movie may not be scary because the story is just not meant to be a horror. The writers did attempt to make it into one with some fiction incorporation, but they did not quite make the cut. Based on its ending, there might be a sequel to this fascinating mansion’s story; therefore, the story could get better or worse.
Rating: 3 out of 5 paws
