The Changeling
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Movie Reviews of The Changeling
Movie Review: "Did you die here, Joseph?"
Summary: 5 Stars
"The Changeling" is one of those rare haunted house films that they simply do not make anymore. It actually has a plot and provokes some emotion from the viewer, not having to utilize retarded special effects, goofball celebrities, and senseless gore.
I would characterize this film as a mood piece, and it works well. George C. Scott does an astounding, irritable job as always, playing a composer who has lost his wife and child to
a horrendous car accident. Then, in a convenient turn of events, he moves into a house with an unpleasant history.
Melvyn Douglas seems to have a knack for playing creepy old men with horrific secrets. He's got that stern, angular face, the kind of look a stingy old grandfather would have while scolding a child for something petty.
As it turns out, the house that Scott moves into was formerly inhabited by a handicapped boy who was drowned for money. The scene in which Scott tries to evoke the spirit of the boy in a seance is unforgettable. The only problem with the film is the ridiculously quick pace at which the intricacies of the plot are revealed. Scott is barely living in the house for two days before he is heading to the department of psychical research and telling his friends that a ghost is trying to communicate with him.
Two objects play a serious part in the film: the ball which Scott's deceased daughter used to play with, and a creaky old wheelchair. The ball just won't stop rolling down the stairs, and the chair won't stop wheeling around in supernatural rage.
What makes the movie is Scott's performance. He lends credibility to a somewhat murky and confusing plot. His rage at the injustice done to the boy, and by extension his determination to reveal the Senator (Douglas) as the "changeling" is also an attempt to make sense of the death of his wife and child. This is a scary film, despite it's faults.
Movie Review: The best ghost story of all time finally on DVD!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
Peter Medak's 1979 masterpiece "The Changeling" is a knockout ghost story, one of the most chilling and atmospheric horror films of all time. I must have watched this film 1000 times as a kid, and it stayed with me like few others. Since there are a number of reviews here that go into great detail summarizing the plot, which is much better left to the viewer - it is a mystery, after all - I want to comment on the DVD version, for all those who are familiar with the film and have been anxiously awaiting the DVD. There seems to be very little information about how the film is presented on most websites that I've found, but after obtaining my own copy, I have to say that even though there's a lack of extras, the DVD does not disappoint. The picture quality is surprisingly wonderful. Colours are rich and deep, with great dark scenes and warm hues. The picture does not appear plugged up or oversaturated, and is refreshingly natural. Like the recent DVD release of "Jaws", it's like watching this film for the first time. Astonishingly, there are no distracting artifacts and the picture does not look dated at all, and as one who has owned about 4 VHS copies in the past, I can honestly say that this is the best this film has ever looked. Contrary to what some websites say, the DVD is presented in a 16x9 widescreen format, and appears to have been matted at about 1.78:1. The Dolby Surround is great, heightening the suspense and atmosphere wonderfully. If you are a fan of this film, the DVD is a dream come true, and if you're simply curious, you can't go wrong - "The Changeling" ranks up with the original version of "The Haunting" and "The Uninvited" as the best examples of the supernatural ever brought to the screen.Movie Review: TRULY SPOOKY UNRAVELING OF THE NERVES!!
Summary: 5 Stars
take a look at the best of old skool horror. man this movie is up there with all the other old fashion great films. it's one of the best without the gore or any of that modern day stuff they got going now. i mean that's still all good you know, but this is exceptional. it's about this man who is left widowed after a tragic accident that took the lives of his only daughter and wife, who decides to start over and get on with his life. what other choice is there. he moves in to this big creepy looking mansion of a house. i mean just one look at it and you want to run away quick. but he stays nothing strange, until a few days into his stay there. he starts hearing things, seeing things, then as the story unfolds it gets very creepy and unexpected. and you will get some chills. a mystery unfolds, something that won't stay buried until it is told. very sad, and very traumatic. and with the help of his lady friend they uncover what has been hidden for over 70 years. only revealing it will put an end to it. it's a ghost story well told, and greatly acted. the house plays a big role itself. the scene where they hold the seance, man that's gonna get you. very well done i was trippin out for a bit. that psychic lady had you going there for a minute. she pulls it off for real. just when you listen to that eerie voice over the recorder. shivers all around. and that part where the wheel chair goes on a rampage after that woman, damn i was in awe. worth your time and is a great pleaser. frightening on a whole other level. george c. scott very well performed and many props. it's all it's hyped up to be and a little more. not what you expected from a movie that looks to be like so many others, and boy does it deliver. it'll sure get your pulse pounding quite a bit.Movie Review: One of the elite haunted house movies of all time
Summary: 5 Stars
For me, the top haunted house movies of all time are The Haunting (1963), The Innocents (1961), The Changeling (1980), The Legend Of Hell House (1973), Burnt Offerings (1976), Rose Red (2002), The Others (2001), House On Haunted Hill (1958), and The Amityville Horror (1979), in that order. The Changeling stars George C. Scott, Trish Van Devere, and Melvyn Douglas. This movie is a combination of a supernatural ghost story and a mystery that keeps you guessing throughout. George C. Scott plays John Russell, a music teacher who loses his wife and daughter in an accident involving a car and a truck. Soon afterward, he moves into an old house to live by himself. It isn't long before he realizes there is something strange going on. He investigates various rooms in the house and unravels some family secrets of previous inhabitants of the house dating back to the turn of the twentieth century. Some further research at the local historical society uncovers even more secrets. The climax of the movie is violent and over-the-top and is the perfect way to end a great haunted house suspense thriller/mystery.
During this movie you'll never see the ghost. This movie was made long before CGI effects and that's a good thing. It's what you don't see that is scary. This movie will creep you out with its scary atmosphere. The acting is superb throughout. The musical score and sound effects are outstanding as well.
This is one of those movies that starts out slow but gets better and better as it goes along. If you're up for a really good movie that involves a haunted house, a ghost, scary scenes, lies, deception, and a mystery to solve, then I highly recommend The Changeling.
Movie Review: Waiting for the third shoe to fall
Summary: 5 Stars
I saw this movie on television in 1982 alone with my older sister.
I came into the room and started to it when George C Scott came into this attic bathroom on the third floor of the house.
Fittenly,but not convieniently for me it was dark out by the time the film ended,
and so I ended following my sister around for the rest of the evening, afraid to walk down the hall or even go into the bathroom. My skin was crawling.....
The "hide and go spook" stradegy of this movie to me was simply the eriee piano music and the remote feeling camera point of veiws which would have you going down a hall way or staring up a stairs that fades inevitably into the dark back ground.
The scariest premise of the film I thought was the idea of sleeping alone in this enormous house on the second floor only to have another set of stairs that asends to a darker unit of wierd shaped attic bed and bathrooms along with a closet which like the film may have a boarded off door with yet another stairs that asends to an even darker isolated room.
The film`s camera work makes you feel alone in the house, like in one scene George C Scott is playing a haunting melody on the piano, and immediatly you are peering down a dark quiet stairwell as you hear the piano faintly playing in the distance from the other side of the house.
What you notice about George C Scott`s character is that he shows a sherlock holmes curiousity rather than a morbid hostilaty towards the house`s murky enviroment.
The fact that this film was made in 1979 adds to the musty dated atmosphere through out the film.
This is the spookiest movie ever.