The picture is a sleek production with acceptable budget and packs genuine chills , suspense , tension , and shocks , it's a terror-thriller very exciting . It deals with a teen named Anna Rydell(Emily Browning) , after spending a stint in a mental institution, return to the home of their father , a famous writer named Steve (David Strathairn) who is now living with her late mother's nurse, Rachel Summer (Elizabeth Banks) and both Anna and her older sister Alex (Arielle Kebel) think Rachel was responsible for her mummy's death in a seaside house blow up the year before . Once there, in addition to dealing with their stepmother's obsessive and cruel ways . Soon after her arrival , Anna also starts to receive warnings from her late ghost mother and three interfering children who affects her recovery . The Alex's sanity is also jeopardized thanks to her unbalanced stepmother , and aloof father . Another night Anna goes to sleep, she hears noises and the door to her bedroom creakily opens and meets the ghost . Terrified, she runs out of her room and tells her sister that someone has come into her room . Alex and Anna set out to look for proofs to demonstrate that Rachel is the killer.
This eerie movie produced by the successful director/producer Ivan Reitman displays terror, shocks, hard-edged drama , plot twists and creepy images . The story come to life in a wonderful fashion, giving it a haunting ominous atmosphere that often seems to mimic the tense relations between the members of the family . While the look is suitable atmospheric and scary , the argument stretches plausibility to the breaking point in a surprising finale . The film is an American remake of successful Korean film titled ¨A tale of two sisters¨ by Ji Woon Kim . It also contains the usual spooky phantoms of pale complexion from Japanese stories directed by Takashi Mike and Hideo Nakata as ¨The Grudge ¨ , ¨ The ring ¨ and ¨ Dark water ¨ . The direction is incredibly good , production design by Andrew Menzies , the cinematography by Daniel Landin , lighting, and especially the soundtrack by expert on terror scores Christopher Young , all are captivating. The motion picture is well directed by the Guard brothers , Charles and Thomas who create a powerful character study that blends chills , thrills , suspense and psychological drama in a cleverly devised plot that certainly offers more than the usual terror film . This is a frightening , psychological thriller, and familiar drama , all at their best that will appeal to horror buffs . Rating : Better than average . Worthwhile watching .
