The Haunting (1963)

Happy Halloween! This week for our featured Letterboxd List review, we end the month with one last horror review. Sticking with the Top 250 Horror list, we have #126…The Haunting (1963).

Title: The Haunting

Director: Robert Wise

Runtime: 1 hour 52 minutes

Released: August 21, 1963 (United States)

Available to stream on: MGM+ and Tubi

Hill House, as we learn from the opening narration, has quite the past. Hugh Crain had it built for his wife, but she tragically died in a freak accident when approaching the house for the first time. Hugh remarried and his second wife just so happened to take a fatal tumble down the stairs. Hugh’s daughter lived in the house until her death. Her nurse inherited the house and unfortunately hung herself from a staircase. A distant cousin of the nurse wound up inheriting the house, which has sat empty for some time.

Meanwhile, Dr. Markway (Richard Johnson) is a paranormal investigator who wishes to investigate the alleged haunting of Hill House. The current owner insists that her heir, Luke (Russ Tamblyn), be allowed to join. Markway then sends out invitations but ultimately, only two people respond, a psychic by the name of Theodora (Claire Bloom) and Eleanor (Julie Harris), a woman looking for her place to belong who also claims to have previously experienced poltergeist activity.

Soon after they arrive, the group begins to sense that something is decidedly off about Hill House. The walls, for instance, are built at strange angles, creating perspectives that feel unnervingly off-center. As they roam through the house, part of the group claims to hear loud banging on the walls, while others insist they hear nothing at all. During their exploration, they even come across a giant marble statue that eerily resembles each of them.

As time passes, it becomes increasingly clear that Eleanor, in particular, seems to be the primary target of Hill House’s strange and unsettling phenomena.

Is it all in Eleanor’s head?

Or is there a haunting in Hill House?

It’s absolutely wild to me that Robert Wise wrapped West Side Story and immediately went on to tackle this film.

The craft of The Haunting (1963) is what truly makes it stand out. Shot in black and white, it instantly makes Hill House feel even more isolating and menacing. Robert Wise and cinematographer Davis Boulton’s use of wide-angle lenses portrays off-center perspectives, giving the sense that Hill House is slowly engulfing its inhabitants.

And then, there’s the sound. Whether it’s a door creaking or banging noises from down the hall, you hear every sound explicitly, each one building an unnerving level of tension. This atmosphere continues to intensify throughout the entire runtime.

Part of what makes The Haunting (1963) so captivating is that it’s all about what you don’t see. We’re never spoon-fed jump scares or told what to believe. Instead, everything is left to your imagination, leaving you to fill in the blanks.

If you love your horror smart and atmospheric, The Haunting (1963) is exactly what you’re looking for.

Well, now it’s your turn!

If you’ve seen The Haunting (1963), leave a comment below or reach out to me on Bluesky or Instagram and tell me what you thought!

As always, you can keep up with everything else that I’ve been watching over on my Letterboxd page.