Very Cool!!!

Powerful

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

'Haunts' has some terrific dramatic material to offer, which the viewer gradually begins to understand through the haphazard memories that haunt our leading lady Ingrid, a farm girl with Swedish roots, a dark past (I suspected incest, murder, but in the end it all turned out a dream, coinciding with a killer on the loose - as best as I could tell), a yearning for religious completion, and, as we eventually learn, heavily psychotic tendencies. The flashbacks and the latter part where things twist and turn like crazy, are my favorite elements. The acting is rather so-so, the dialogues more than often fail and the whole story is way too confusing (and in the end somewhat disappointing, if I understand it correctly) to take seriously. I mean, the only option in the end is that Ingrid imagined the attacks, right? But then, the ending of her appearing in the mirror before uncle Carl, seemed a little ambiguous, as did some memories. I was expecting Carl to be a possible bad guy, and even Ingrid, as well... like I said, way too confusing, but still interesting.The backdrop of the rural village, farms, roads and off-roads (I would have guessed somewhere in Wisconsin, but it was shot in California, so...?) is beautiful, but its inhabitants struggling with day to day life turned upside down by a vicious killer could / should have been so much better.An interesting flick, very much, but not really a good one, all things considered. 5 out of 10.

A sadistic killer strikes a small town using scissors to kill his victims (all women). A repressed farm girl named Ingrid (May Britt) lives all alone and thinks she may be the next victim. Her uncle (Cameron Mitchell) thinks she's overreacting and the chief of police (Aldo Ray) doesn't believe her.This film is a little bit too slow but it is well-made on a low budget. The acting is good (especially by Britt) and there are some real creepy moments when the killer goes after her. It also has a thundering music score which is excellent but seems out of place in such a low budget movie. It starts off slow but picks up speed and has a couple of great twists at the end that I didn't see coming. It's PG so it's very tame in terms of blood and guts but it works as a psychological horror film. It didn't frighten me exactly but I can't stop thinking about it. Worth checking out. I give it a 7.

Those expecting a haunted house story or slasher with exploitative ingredients need not bother with this film, but viewers who like their horror stories with subtlety and a slow-paced sense of impending doom should check out this nifty flick. The main drawback to this film is the lack of even a single likable character in the story. The protagonist, Ingrid, played by May Britt, is a cold, self-absorbed, man-hating woman who cannot be liked. The sheriff, well played by Aldo Ray, might be the only likable character in this film but when he disregards Ingrid's claims of being attacked because he is suffering from a sickness, one can't like him that much either.The main premise of this film concerns a serial rapist preying on the women of rural community. There are a handful of suspects, ranging from the town Casanova, the new to town drifter and Ingrid's uncle (Cameron Mitchell). When Ingrid is attacked and claims that the town Casanova raped her, the sheriff thinks he has his man until he learns that there might be more to Ingrid than meets the eye.VIOLENCE: $$$ (Not too graphic, but there are several rape and attempted rape scenes - handled about as tastefully as a director can handle such an incident. There is a shooting and a stabbing, but when the violence occurs you couldn't care less about who is the recipient of the bad guy's wrath since everyone in this picture is unlikable).STORY: $$$$$ (Well handled and thought-out screenplay that gives the viewer quite an unexpected twist. Halfway through the film the rapist is revealed by Ingrid but now Sheriff Aldo Ray must investigate to find out if Ingrid speaks the truth or is trying to frame the Casanova - who has just knocked up the sheriff's daughter (Kendall Jackson).NUDITY: $ (There are two shower scenes but you see nothing. Aldo Ray also catches his daughter in bed with the town Casanova, but she scurries off screen swiftly).ACTING: $$ (The acting is the main drawback to this film. With a more capable cast this very well could have been a cult classic - if not something more. Aldo Ray and Cameron Mitchell give the best performances in this film. May Britt, as the lead, was over her head in this film and failed to make me care for her character. Her acting talents are wanting to say the least).

Haunts is perplexing and flawed, but still offbeat enough to maintain interest. Swedish May Britt gives a very good performance as a repressed, tormented, fanatically religious farm girl in a town plagued by a brutal sex murderer. Despite the potentially lurid subject matter, it's all handled with a very subtle approach (even in the uncut R-rated version). Well-cast (though Aldo Ray deserved better and Cameron Mitchell doesn't have much to do) and graced with a lush Pino Donaggio score and beautiful but unpolished photography, it has some standout moments; one unforgettable scene has Britt driving, with the scenic reflections in the windshield melding into a montage of flashbacks. What hurts it are too many routine passages, klutzy red herrings, a lack of momentum, and extraneous material. Sometimes it becomes quite frustrating, but patience is ultimately rewarded by a very original twist at the end. Most certainly not for everybody, but worth seeing if you're an art fan looking for a change of pace.Trivia note: Copyrighted 1975, Haunts was shelved until 1976 when Intercontinental released it to theaters of confused moviegoers.