Happy Birthday to Me!

I love Birthday Money and was reflecting on how much it will suck when it doesn't come anymore. Even so, it's still coming in, and I got myself a few little gifts that I've wanted for awhile.

I have been wanting this forever, and I finally bought it myself. Now the conundrum is: do I open it? Maybe I'll buy the movies separately and store it in its packaging for when it's worth bazillions and I can sell it for my retirement. But then, I wouldn't be able to play with the statuettes of Frankie, Drac, and Wolfie. Decisions, decisions.

I got a few other favorites I've been wanting and are about to disappear from the earth. Of course, all these lovely DVDs I've been waiting to watch will have to wait, as the house is still torn up from getting new floors in, which is actually only lacking in the new floor part since the water damage is still drying out. So the dvd player is packed away along with almost every other fun electronic toy we have that would help me see these on the big screen. Oh, well. I should be working, anyway.

*sigh*

The Haunting (1963)

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the original story, "The Haunting of Hill House," the first thing to remember is that is has nothing to do with "The Legend of Hell House," although both stories are of the classic gothic haunted house variety.

Written by Shirley Jackson, the book is narrated by Eleanor Vance, a still-young but bitter and unstable woman recently freed of eleven years of the high demands of her dying mother. As she has spent nearly every waking hour with her mother until her death, Eleanor has no confidence and few social skills to draw on to help her in her new life and her new freedom. Eleanor also seems to have a strange talent, one that draws the attention of Dr. John Montague, a paranormal researcher. He issues her an invitation to-dum, dum DUUUUUM!- Hill House, the iconic house on the hill that no one has been able to spend the night in.

The House finds a sympathetic soul mate in Eleanor, whose narcissism and twisted need to be needed instilled by long years of caring for her mother make her the logical target for both Hill House's terror and its seduction.

This is truly my kind of story, whether it's in its original written form or seen on t.v. late at night and alone in the dark. I love how the story is told from the point of view of an unstable narcissist, one who you nevertheless feel empathy with. It's a triumph for Jackson, in my opinion, to be able to write such a character with such believability. The interior shots of the house are simply stunning, and the slow ratcheting up of tension by director Robert Wise is masterfully done. I'm a big fan of the "show less if you can get away with it" school of haunted house movies, and this 1963 version doesn't disappoint. In my opinion, this version far outshines the 1999 update starring Liam Neeson, though I suppose that version is o.k. if you hadn't read the book or seen the original film.

I won't post the entire movie here, as there are thirteen different parts on YouTube, but I will tell you it's available on Netflix.

Watch it with someone you trust to have your back...