good back-story, and good acting

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

Probably the greatest ghost story ever filmed, this is not about a traditional "haunted house", but a one consumed by something unknown, making this more a supernatural mystery than a horror film. Ray Milland and Ruth Hussey play brother and sister who decide to buy a house on the rocky shores of Cornwall and find something they don't quite understand. The previous owner (a commanding Donald Crisp) only reveals enough about the strange past of this gorgeous house to open the mystery, and Crisp's young granddaughter (Gail Russell) reveals strange traits that strengthen the mystery and bring her and Milland closer together.It appears that Russell is haunted by the memory of her mother who died a horrific death on those very same cliffs, and exhibits behaviors that make it appear that she is either possessed by her mother's spirit or possibly visited by it. The house itself is a character all its own, beautiful but remote and distant, as Gothic as Wuthering Heights or Mandalay, and as seemingly dead as its spirit bound abortions, never seen until the thrilling conclusion but heard, yet physically alive and surrounded by growing beauty, but nonetheless sinister without being deadly. Broadway star Cornelia Otis Skinner adds further into the mystery as an old acquaintance of the deceased who makes an 11:00 appearance to treat Russell, but at what cost, and more mysteriously, why?An outstanding musical score and breathtaking photography makes this a haunting example of how an artistic film could have popular appeal. For director Lewis Allen, it is his crowning achievement, and for its three young stars, their own entry into a type of ghostly immortality. Russell would have her own demons to face in life, but as the troubled heroine of the story, gives the best performance, giving her a place in film history as a star of Gothic thrillers. Like another Gothic thriller ("The Cat People") with horror overtones, this had an unofficial follow-up ("The Unseen") with unrelated characters that may not be as well remembered as the original, but worth seeking out as well.

Heading out to the countryside, a brother and sister find themselves moving into a mansion along the coastline which they learn about the ghosts inhabiting the area and try to find a way of appeasing the spirits within before they manage to harm their friends.There really isn't a whole lot here. Among the better parts here is the film's rather strong sense of atmosphere here, as there's points at the right moments where the house can be pretty creepy. The design, which is filled with a great arrangement of furniture and an especially well-placed twisting stairway in the middle of the house that manages to create a really effective atmosphere for the film, gets some great amount of suspense with the general design and with a lot of openness in the windows everywhere allowing a lot of light at times this one serves as a solid haunting-ready location. There's also an important factor in the design of the stairwell towards how the conclusion plays out, since it's the film's single best scene, with the ghost appearing to float down in a rather ethereal manner that only works because of how the staircase was a spiraling design rather than a traditional one. There's some solid work in building up the idea of ghost here with the music being played, the howling wind and floating voices that match the stories told about the house which match well with the creeping fog rolling across the cliff- tops, and a really creepy séance in the middle of the film that has an odd creep factor to it really selling this one rather well. The last positive here is that there's also a really great final twenty minutes here that always manages to get some action in the film, which are some of the best parts of the film generating the full extent of her connection to the past and letting some nice haunting scenes come about here with a solid resolution. These are it's main points of interest since this here has a lot of flaws present. One of the biggest issues is that the film takes a near eternity to get going. The beginning is mostly concerned with incredibly boring tripe about the families getting along, their moving in and meeting the neighbors and the utterly bland romance that feels so out-of- place in a film like this. The distrust here doesn't make the film any bit of entertaining due to it being so dull to sit through and takes time away from the ghost angle, which should be the main point with this one. Ignoring it by focusing it on a really lousy subplot about the family members being secretive about the reasons for a romance to be a bad thing isn't compelling viewing, and makes it seem all the more longer when the ghosts finally appear. They're just endless and really drag this one out intermittently. This is the film's most pressing problem, as there's nothing at all interesting going on in the beginning of the film. It's not really scary, and there is very little reason to get into the first half of this as the film simply seems concerned with useless jabbering on about elements that aren't interesting where it all results in a long period in the film before the ghosts actually show up. It's the one thing that really drags the film down.Today's Rating/PG: Mild Violence.

The Uninvited takes place near the coast of Cornwall and is about a brother and sister who purchase a house that is in fact haunted. They must uncover the mysterious past of the previous occupants in order to vanquish the spirit.This film might have been terrifying in 1944 as the sub genre of haunted houses was not explored to deeply, so anything remotely scary might have terrified the audience. Now my dislike of this movie might be solely do to the fact by 2016 the haunted house type films have been done to death. I believe the real fault is due to the lack of tension throughout the movie. How is the audience supposed to be terrified if the main characters do not seem to be moved in the slightest? Occasionally their eyes might strike fear but that is about it. Also they talk through every potential fearful encounter that just ruins the moment. Without proper suspense most horror movies become comical which this one did at times.However the story was interesting for the time it was made, well at least for the parts that were comprehensible because at times the characters had to talk quieter but would still speak at a more rapid pace that you may miss an important word or two that could be vital to the plot. Even with this problem all the actors in this film were great. If you are looking for a scary movie to watch some night I don't think this would be a very good pick; however if you see yourself as a horror historian and want to see a film that was a pioneer of its time this is certainly one to watch. I am sure many horror films of the past 70+ years have taken inspiration from this movie.

I have always admired the sumptuous look of this film. These days, with the special effects available, the ghosts in the story would be awesome, but this 70-year old film didn't really need all that, it works just fine on every level.The film has a haunting quality, but that also has a lot to do with the stars, all of them gone now.Rick Fitzgerald (Ray Milland) and his sister Pamela (Ruth Hussey) buy a large house on a clifftop in Cornwall. They soon discover that it is haunted, and it's all to do with the previous owners, Commander Beech (Donald Crisp) and his granddaughter Stella Meredith (Gail Russell). In fact Stella is the focus of all the ghostly intentions, and in the end we find out why.The story is set in 1937 in Cornwall, but it was made in Hollywood at the height of WW2. It was created on sound stages married with location footage along the Californian coast. Its slightly unreal look adds to the atmosphere.The film has fascinating stars including Gail Russell in her third film. She was one the most tragic stars of them all. She died at 36, the same age as Marilyn Monroe. She had a look that captivated audiences from the moment she hit the screen and when you see how luminous she is in this film, its hard to believe her life had already begun its downward spiral caused by paralysing stage fright, depression and alcoholism.The tragedy of her life has haunted more than one writer, and in the most recent biography, "Fallen Star", author Glen Ochoa details her lifelong fear of facing crowds and the unblinking eye of the movie camera. Knowing this gives an insight into her performance in "The Uninvited", which was edited together from short takes. In a way, her hesitancy underlined the vulnerability of Stella Meredith.Another fascinating actor was the striking Cornelius Otis Skinner as Miss Holloway whose obsessive devotion to Stella's dead mother had subtext written all over it."The Uninvited" is a testimony to the talents of Paramount's art department; I love those scenes of the house sitting on the headland with the crashing waves below. Along with moody black and white photography, Victor Young contributed a rich score with a famous main theme."The Uninvited' is still scary, but also has touches of wit with an ending that rivals the "The Sixth Sense" for surprise value.