Last week a new horror series premiered on Netflix: The Haunting of Hill House. I was starting to get in the Halloween mood and looking for something new and scary to watch, so I decided to check it out, not knowing much about it or what to expect. And WOW, it far exceeded my expectations, keeping me completely glued to the tv for several days straight. The show, based on a book by Shirley Jackson, follows 5 siblings: Steve, Shirley, Theodora ("Theo"), and twins Luke and Eleanor ("Nellie"), flashing back and forth between their present adult lives and their memorable summer as kids living in Hill House, a seriously haunted old Victorian house. Each sibling faces problems as adults, which they ultimately trace back to their time at Hill House: Shirley and Steve are in unhappy marriages, Theo is a promiscuous alcoholic, Luke is a drug addict, and Nellie is severely depressed and emotionally unstable.
Almost every episode follow the Lost model of focusing on one sibling per episode, showing events at Hill House and in the present day from each individual character's perspective. This structure allows the viewer to get to know each sibling (as well as their parents) deeply, enriching their understanding of big events like the family's last night in Hill House and the night of one character's death in the present day. What starts out as a simple show about a haunted house becomes a rich family drama with supernatural elements, mostly due to the complex writing and rich talent of its actors. The twins in particular (Oliver Jackson-Cohen as Luke, Victoria Pedretti as Nellie) stand out among the cast, as their characters carry around the biggest demons (literally and figuratively). In addition, Carla Gugino, a veteran but relatively unknown tv actress, shines as the siblings' mom Olivia. Although her performance is a bit over-the-top, the show calls for it, as her character slowly unravels over the course of several months living in the house. I also have to point out that the uniquely structured episode 6, in which the entire family gathers at a funeral home to say goodbye to one of their own (I won't spoil who), is particularly impactful. It doesn't follow the single-character focus of most of the other episodes, but instead it brilliantly allows each character to confront each other over long-held issues while grieving their loved one.
Tall Floating Man video
Finally, the show works because it is downright scary! As a horror fan, it's been really hard in the past few years to find a good horror movie or tv show that effectively builds suspense and doesn't just rely on cheap jump-scares. There are other horror shows out there, but their writing is inconsistent and they just don't have the same impact as Hill House (cough*American Horror Story*cough). The ghosts in Hill House are actually shown pretty sparingly, at least up until the last few episodes, creating a strong sense of suspense and fear of the unknown. Many ghosts are, however, cleverly hidden in other scenes, with only eagle-eyed viewers noticing them. I wasn't one of those viewers, only seeing some of the hidden ghosts when a friend pointed them out to me later. Three ghosts/supernatural creatures in particular stuck with me even after I finished the show, as they also stuck with Luke and Nellie. A mysterious tall floating man first haunted young Luke in the house, then continued to do so into his troubled adulthood, pushing him to do drugs to stop the visions of him. The Bent-Neck Lady appeared to Nellie for years even after she left the house, causing her sleep paralysis and literally making her go crazy. Finally, when a creepy zombie-like creature came at young Luke in the basement of Hill House, I literally yelled out loud in my living room. No wonder these twins were so messed up!
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