The House on Pine Street (2015)

Something odd about the way this film was shot made it feel low budget, but it engaged in some very compelling bits of subtle, paranoia-laced horror early on, particularly with the way people continuously stared at Jennifer, in a way that could easily just be normal yet when amplified through the uncomfortable eyes of the protagonist, come across almost paranormal in how unsettling it is. When it does start up with its Haunted House Shenanigans, it tends to do so in a way in some rather straightforward ways, with noises and shadows and visual hallucinations, all done in a style to make it rather unclear as to whether its an actual haunting or all in Jennifer's mind. Certain physical feats (such as a broken wooden door) seem too extreme to just be in her head, but are extremely plausible to actually be just in her head (the door was old and likely damaged from mildew and humidity).The film does a great job despite its low budget look and feel at hooking you in and keeping you as perpetually tense and paranoid as Jennifer. There seems to be a breakthrough with the character Walter at one point which further adds to the mystery as to whether this is even some manner of "ghost" or some other inexplicable phenomenon. Where it completely falls apart is near the end, in a conversation/expo-dump with Walter, where he goes and explains that it isn't an actual ghost haunting but... "Energy" Namely, Jennifer's "energy" is like, just so intense, you know, so it, like, manifests in spooky ways. You see, like, her like "energy" like interacts with other people's "energy" and other thing's "energy" and that causes Jennifer to savagely beat herself up and destroy everything. Because since she wants to not live in the house, her "energy" is causing her to self destruct and destroy everything around her in a fitful desire to move out of the house. Leaving aside the fact that energy doesn't work that way, this pseudo-science "magic" feels extremely close to astrology, with the idea that people's "energy" or more accurately "midichlorians" vibrate in some magic way that cause actual physical effects in the world, which in turn also has magic that interacts with them. If this were the case, everyone's magic energy would be blinded, deafened, and drowned by the overwhelming nuclear "energy" of the sun every single day.

After reading so many negative comments on the IMDb message board, I was very skeptical about watching this film at the local cinema. But I decided to go against all of the negativity and give this film a chance and I'm very glad I did so.I was the only one in the entire theater (which is always a plus for me as I hate the annoying moviegoers using their cell phone or having a loud conversation with one another). So this movie is not your run of the mill 'Horror' that Hollywood is churning out these days with the usual creature make ups and jump scares. For me, none of that is scary. It never makes me feel uneasy. It's rather just a cheap ploy to make the viewer jump the same way a child might do by hiding behind a corner and scream boo!.This movie is a rather fresh take on the entire paranormal phenomenon and it lets the viewer decide what they think is taking place and whether or not it is real. The story made me connect with the protagonist, the husband and even the mother in law at the same time making me change my mind about each one of them throughout. Of course it uses the typical "husband won't believe what the wife tells him" but it is used in a very clever way.I do not want to give away too much but I thought It would be good to give my two cents on the review section and let people know that there was never a dull moment in the film for me. The shots were tasteful, the acting was very good and the 'horror' bits were unsettling without the use of cheap tactics.At the end of the film, I was very pleased and I would recommend it to any true fans of the supernatural/psychological horror genre. Not recommended for fans of Jump Scare Horror. It's a solid 8/10.It is not a masterpiece, but it's a great little film.

Eerie, atmospheric and at times genuinely unsettling, its a respectable addition to the haunted house genre. The movie is probably a little too long at just under two hours, but the viewers patience during the slow build up is rewarded with some chilling scenes, added to greatly by the movies creepy sound effects which are utilized extremely craftily. The lead actress, Emily Goss, does a fine job of portraying a tortured individual, akin to the mother in The Babadook, a very different type of haunted house flick. The film makers seem to have made the most of an obviously limited budget and for the most part avoid the usual clichés/tropes movies of a similar nature often surrender to.

This was recommended to me because I liked The Conjuring, but I think The House on Pine Street hearkens back to an even earlier more stylish film -- Robert Wise's The Haunting. Like that film, The House on Pine Street uses mostly sound effects and lighting for its scares, though mixed in with modern shooting techniques to make it feel fresh. The film creates honest scares while also portraying a young wife's ambivalence toward motherhood and returning to her hometown. Fun and more effective for what it doesn't actually show or tell us is going on, it waits awhile before getting into the paranormal. It's patient, intelligent, and well-acted.