The Haunting of Helen Walker

This was worse than a Harlequin romance novel: the only good part was the old castle and the surrounding landscape. Hammy, overdone rehash of every 2 bit ghostly/old manse film that's ever been done. It provided rain, lightning, dim corridors, haunting music, candles blowing out, spectral beings, and on and on and on all the way to the 'creepy' finale. Valerie should have stayed home and let Eddie bring home the bacon.

I am a huge horror fan and this film is up there with the best of them. I might even go so far as to compare the shocks in this film to those found in 'Don't Look Now'. It starts quite slowly and seems to be just an ordinary period drama to begin with, but soon your heart will start beating.

The first shock is totally unexpected and will still scare you when you think about it later. I won't give it away, but you'll notice it! Although the film does have some slower bits, there are enough twists, turns and shocks throughout to keep you interested. One of the only bad parts of this film is the children that Helen Walker looks after. I wanted to give them (especially the boy) a good slap, but this does not decrease the power and shock of the images that'll keep you thinking about this film long after you've seen it.

This one is based on Henry James' classic tale "Turn of the Screw".

This is a slower burner - it is a drama with bits of subtle spookiness at the beginning but by then end of the film there are several creepy scenes.

I can't give away the film's ending for first time viewers but I can say that Miles (the boy in the film) I wanted to paddle his butt thoughout most of the movie but towards the ending you'll understand why he acted that way - and it's sickening what was going on with him and his sister Flora. Worth watching!

7/10

In agreement with the other comments, I too was skeptical with Valerie Bertinelli in the part of the governess in basically an all British film. But she was surprisingly very good. I also agree that this was a very scary movie. The effects were great, not overboard. The actor portraying Peter Quint was diabolical looking. Think about how difficult it is to act without being able to speak....very interesting. Diana Rigg, as always was great in her role. The children were okay, the boy had a tendency to squint, but when his eyes were open, he was a very handsome child. The film location was perfect for this type of movie, kind of pseudo-gothic. If you like horror, I would definitely recommend this movie.

Just when I thought I had seen every adaptation of Henry James' "The Turn of the Screw," the IMDb algorithm suggested this film to me...

Commissioned by CBS and given to Tom McLoughlin, who was always known for his middling yet distinctive work, the project, while appearing to be a rather loose adaptation of Henry James' work, is actually a rather intriguing and watchable TV movie with a few minor changes.

When it aired, the film was practically buried by ABC's remake of the 1960s musical "Bye Bye Birdie" starring Jason Alexander, which drew 13.6 million viewers, and despite this, it has taken its place among forgotten productions.

Being an American adaptation of a British production, I did experience a bit of a problem with the emotional transition, but this has been mentioned in the comments made about the work since its release... despite CBS and the BBC collaborating on quite a few projects.