From HouseofHorrors.com
DVD Review: The Skeleton Key
By HammerFanatic
Jan 17, 2006, 21:32
Caroline Ellis (Kate Hudson) is a young woman that decides on a career change, and decides to be a hospice worker and is quickly hired to care for Ben Devearux (John Hurt), a man who suffered a debilitating stroke, which has rendered him nearly motionless and with no ability to speak and isn't expected to survive much longer. Ellis is brought to the Deveraux home, a huge, rambling home in Louisiana to meet Ben and his domineering and less-than-friendly wife, Violet (Gena Rowlands). The job to care for Ben is arranged by the family lawyer, Luke (Peter Sarsgaard), who convinces Ellis to accept the job, in spite of the objections of Violet Deveraux. Ellis returns to the Deveraux home and is given a tour of the home and handed her own skeleton key to unlock any room in the house. Ellis has a routine with Ben, but it isn't long before Ellis hears strange sounds within the house and one particularly stormy night( doesn't it always rain and thunder in a film like this?), Ellis is shocked to find Ben has actually gotten out of his bed and is on the roof and appears to be attempting an escape from his home! Ben has left a message asking for help and Ellis forces Violet to tell her the history of the home. Rather than being scared off, once she is told the history of the house, Ellis seems to only want to delve deeper into the history of the home, the actual reason why Ben Deveraux is in the state of health he is in and all answers seem to lead to the attic of the home and Violet Deveraux, herself. What ensues is how much truth Ellis puts in the Voodoo tales she's told by Violet Deveraux and what her investigation of the truth tells in the end.
If you're familiar with screenwriter, Ehren Kruger and you know he was the screenwriter and writer for such films as, Scream 3, The Ring and The Ring Two, then you might be thinking this film is a scare-fest waiting to happen, but in truth, The Skeleton Key is more of a thriller. You won't find any real scares in this film, aside from the occasional jump from cracks of thunder or things that go bump or bang in the night at the Deveraux home. Granted, the film had an ending I didn't really see coming, but even that wasn't scary and it took a long time for the film to reach any real tension. The film fell into some of the old standby actions of some horror films....chases in the rain and at night, but by the time this was happening, I was looking at the clock simply waiting for the film to end. The cast was actually the strong point for this film, John Hurt did a great job for someone who actually had little to do and damn near nothing to say and Gena Rowlands is always a pleasure to watch. I must admit to having not seen Hudson in anything before this film and while she wasn't the strongest aspect of the film, she certainly held her own with the other actors. Probably the strongest aspect of the film for me was the Louisiana scenery.....there's just something about the Louisiana bayous and New Orleans that gives any film a scense of realism....the area drips with atmosphere and adds plenty of flavor to this film.
In the end, the film doesn't stand up to what I was hoping it would deliver, but it's not a total loss, the cast is solid and the Louisiana scenery is wonderful.
Buy the The Skeleton Key on DVD at Amazon.com
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