The Haunting
Published October 23, 2025
Film info
- Title The Haunting
- Director Robert Wise
- Year 1963
- Run time 1hr 52m
- Genre Horror
- Tagline You may not believe in ghosts but you cannot deny terror
Dr. John Markway invites three distinct individuals to the eerie and isolated Hill House to be subjects for a sleep disorder study. The unfortunate guests discover that Markway is far more interested in the sinister mansion itself — and they soon see the true nature of its horror.
Live blog
| Time | Comment |
|---|---|
| 3:15 | Hugh Crain is a weird sounding name. |
| 6:30 | “No one who rented Hill House ever stayed more than a few days.” Challenge accepted! |
| 16:12 | Dudley the caretaker is going to be trouble. |
| 19:32 | Sometimes I’m grateful for black and white because the patterns in that bedroom look overwhelming. |
| 26:46 | “There isn’t a square corner in the place.” Bah. |
| 29:41 | He’s in West Side Story, right? |
| 39:40 | That is pretty creepy to be fair. |
| 46:54 | Sleeping on your left side wears the heart out quicker??? |
| 53:46 | House with statues in it is automatically creepy. |
| 1:04:09 | The politest little sneeze. I’d scare the ghosts away if I sneezed. |
| 1:09:42 | A lot of this is centred around Nell’s mental health though. |
| 1:21:20 | “Only one way to argue with a woman, Doc. Don’t.” |
| 1:31:12 | It’s cleverly done. |
| 1:42:20 | “Who do I thank for a lovely time?” |
Thoughts
It took me a minute to realise this was, of course, based on The Haunting of Hill House. I’ve read the book and seen the Netflix adaptation, so was very intrigued to see how the film version played out. I really liked it - you never see anything particularly scary, only the building up of tension which is cleverly done, and the wickedness of humans to each other. It’s creepy and tense and just feels like a ghost story being told to you, wherein you have to use your imagination to fill in the blanks. Very enjoyable.
Rating: 4 / 5