Ugh, it looks like horror films are still on their downward spiral this year. “Dream House,” starring Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz, has failed at the box office, garnering an abysmal 8% rotten, according to Rotten Tomatoes. The audience was slightly kinder, but still hated it, giving it a 43% rotten rating.
There’s a lot to not like in the movie, the use of kids, once again, being one of them. Kids in scary movies is now totally past cliche, in my book, and I wish horror films would cut it out unless the kids are actually well-described characters that mean something to the plot, like Carol-Ann in “Poltergeist.”
Overall, the movie critics had a field day with talking about why they hated the film. “Was the screenplay, credited to Daivd Loucka, this schizophrenic from the beginning? Or was some major tampering/reworking done at some point?” asked James Berardinelli for ReelViews. “Sheridan’s pacing is turgid and mournful, which lends the story–sort of like The Shining crossed with Gothika during a sleepover stop at The Amityville Horror–an air of ponderousness,” said Joe Neumaier for the New York Daily News. “Hard to believe such a hokey, stupid film could attract so much talent,” said Chris Bumbray of JoBlo’s Movie Emporium.
Basically, its a bad movie. But what do you think about it? Do you think the critics are being too hard on the film? Give your opinions in the comments section below.
