THE OTHERS

REVIEWED BY CHARITY BISHOP

Our rating: 3 out of 5

Because of: a séance, supernatural elements

Rated:

There is nothing more chilling than heading to a theater one cold, rainy winter evening with a group of girlfriends and curling up in a darkened theater with The Others. Unlike the normal swiftly unfolding ghost story, its a slow-moving film that builds to a chilling climax that will leave goose bumps running up and down your arms. The premise is old -- a haunted house on a fog-shrouded island -- but the cast is new: a young mother with two children who purposely live in a darkened atmosphere due to the children's hypersensitive allergy to light.

If anything, the film opens on a cold note, as Grace (Nichole Kidman) awakens from some unspoken horror. Living alone in a musty manor on an Island off the British Coast, the family has been left largely alone. The servants have vanished. Grace's husband is presumed lost at war. And she is at her wit's end trying to keep the children alive. Deciding to pen an advertisement for help, before she can ring up the newspaper, three mysterious strangers arrive on her door seeking employment. It is not long thereafter when Grace begins hearing thumps on the upper floor... and her children claim that something is living among them. Doors open and close by themselves, Grace sees sinister figures in the night, and traces them to unfamiliar faces in an ancient family album. The children draw eerie pictures of "ghosts" that they've seen, and number how many times they've seen them. Convinced of her Catholic roots, she dissuades the children from spinning "tales," but something evil is rampant on the island and will ultimately place her beloved children in deadly peril.

A small-budget film with a big following, The Others is an extremely suspenseful ghost story with an unseen premise. I am not generally in favor of ghost stories, but the point is not whether or not Christian audiences should view ghost-related films, but rather which creepy ghost stories are more acceptable in accordance with moral standards. I was not impressed with The Sixth Sense -- it felt to me demonic. I was appalled by What Lies Beneath's heavy emphasis on the occult, and The Haunting was nothing less than silly. Thus said, if you are a die-hard ghost-fan, The Others would the best spine-tingler to come out in a long time... if it weren't for the distinctly anti-Christian worldview. Catholics (and other denominations) should rightly take offense at the insinuation that faith is merely a crutch for the weak and spineless. What's more, that it's all bunk in the long run and the afterlife isn't what we believe in Christ, but rather what the world has in store for us. The film takes a direct jab at Christianity and places the Bible in a mocking light. As one little girl innocently states, "Mother tells us not to believe everything we hear in stories, but she expects us to believe everything in the Bible."

Additionally, "supernatural" contacts are made via a séance, and the film pushes forward several decidedly skewered views of Catholic beliefs that are no longer in use. Worse, Grace comes across not only as manipulative by using Bible stories to terrify her children into obedience, but obviously foolish for clinging to her religious beliefs even after everything she ever believed about ghosts and life after death are proved wrong. It is important to remember that what is attacked is someone's skewed vision of Christianity and not the real thing, which is far better than any atheist could ever imagine. But still, it provides a chilling basis for the film's conclusion. If one cares to overlook the obvious anti-Christian message that Hollywood so delights pushing at the mass consumer and the ghostly haunting of the manor, the film is largely void of objectionable content. Less than a handful of minor profanities pop up. The film uses the possible rather than the violent to create chills; often the ghosts are not directly seen, but you sense that they are there.

There is very little sensual content (just some kissing in bed between a married couple), but enough "jump scenes" to freak even older viewers out and a distinctly creepy scene in which Grace comes across an ghastly, sinewy figure in children's clothing. Visually the film is a masterpiece, creating a dark world that seems strangely sinister; eventually you begin to question everyone -- and everything -- in it. Nicole Kidman is nothing less than stunning; this role fits her like a glove and gives her the opportunity to truly shine. The horror is only intensified by the knowledge that the children cannot be thrown into direct sunlight -- so when a ghostly intruder creeps in and throws wide the draperies, the audience feels helpless and horrified. Understandably I cannot recommend The Others. If you do choose to delve into this chilling masterpiece, proceed cautiously.  Some Christians may have no problem with the film's dark themes; if you are a Sixth Sense fan, you have found another perfect "ghost story" to add to your collection. But if, like myself, you are pretty uncomfortable overall with the dark spiritual aspects, I would suggest renting a Hitchcock film and avoiding ghost films like The Others entirely.