Ghost House

Saw this recently on a DVD. Found it to be lame n full of clichés. The film is about an American couple holidaying in Thailand who find themselves haunted by an evil spirit. This film has shades of Drag me to hell, a la the spirit will torture for three days n will consume after that. Well, the director of this film ain't no Raimi who did a terrific job with Drag me... Here the scares r annoying at times because its been done so many times. Pretty much everything is borrowed. The film does boast of some good cinematography. The Thai countryside has been shot very well. The place where the shaman lives is almost like the lair of Medusa from Clash of the titans n also similar to the castle of the wizard from Conan the destroyer. Situated in the middle of nowhere, the road/way to it is totally spooky with the mist n water surrounding it. But what do these shaman eat n what do they do without any amenities or other stuff? Personally, i have disliked most Asian horror scares i.e. scary girls with black hair, twisted bodies, disjointed movements, old witches, hollow faces, dark eyes, sudden jump scares n pop ups. Some of its effectiveness has been diluted by imitation. Demonic possessions premise has been done so many times that only die hard fans of the genre may enjoy this.

Ghost House is worth a watch, it's a decent horror, with a few good moments, some decent scares, and it's well acted.

My criticisms would come from the fact that it contains virtually every single horror cliche in existence. We have the wise woman, the long haired female ghost, an English villain, arched backs, a ceremony, literally everything you would expect to see in a horror film is on show here.

Despite all that though, it is still a good watch, the beginning is very atmospheric, and the way in which the young couple are manipated into trouble is very well done.

It's unsurprising, but decent. 6/10

The film starts off moderately ok with a couple vacationing in Thailand who visit an ancient burial site where they are attacked by an evil spirit that follows them throughout the vacation. The film then spirals into a mess of cliches, bad acting, predictable jump scares, and a story that does not hold your attention. The story becomes dull and uninteresting within 15 minutes of the opening, an opening that crams too much information into it, making questions one would have about the story answered already, leaving the story nearly non-existent.

The jump scares are almost all the same. Girl is alone, ghost suddenly appears, girl freaks out. It may work the first few times, but you end up knowing what the scare is going to be before it happens. While the ghost from a distance could be considered by some as scary, up close it is not. The make-up job on the ghost is so poorly done, it renders the tensions useless and takes you out of the moment. The writing is also painfully dull, including characters with barely one dimension as well as conversations that leave you waiting for it to be over so the next scare will come.

In short, if you are a horror veteran, skip it. If not and you want some cheap scares, go for it.

This really wasn't bad. I've seen way worse when picking random Netflix horror movies.

The boyfriend was annoying, but the rest of the acting wasn't bad. There were a few good jump scares.

Nothing new here as far as the "Ghost attaches itself to person and friends must find out how to banish it" story. Instead of a video tape here, we have "Ghost Houses".

I was entertained on a night where I couldn't find anything else to watch.

Not sure why there are so many negative responses published here to this absolutely competent nod to the Asian "ghost" genre.

Yes, the story is cliched: An American disturbs some kind of relic and as a result is haunted by a vengeful spirit.

What raises "Ghost House" up, however, are some beautiful locations, some obvious guerrilla-style filmmaking, interesting and creative direction and a funky visual style.

Also, while the lead actors are often charmless and whiny, the supporting cast is a hoot, from an old hippie shaman to a Thai witch doctor whose facial expressions are extraordinary. It's obvious they hired a number of Thai locals in these supporting parts, and that lends needed authenticity to the film.

Most of the scares are "jumps," but effective, and there are a couple of real harrowing and haunting scenes.

At the end of the day, "Ghost House" transcends it's weaknesses to become, as a whole, a decent, interesting effort that's worth your time.