The Haunting of Hill House

[frelling_tralk]

Late response, but what an absolutely wonderful show that was, definitely one of my favourite shows to come out of Netflix this year. Admittedly sometimes it was a bit too scary for me as I’m a total wuss who hates jump scares, I often found myself watching through my fingers because the tension and buildup were becoming too much, but what I really

Comments

[frelling_tralk]

I absolutely was as well, it’s a show that I think I would really benefit from rewatching at some point as there were certain scenes where I was too tense to fully take everything in. I was surprised to read some people saying that they didn’t find it scary at all o_0 I was always absolutely terrified of the idea of ghosts and hauntings when I was young though, so I was probably predisposed to find it really scary *g

[frelling_tralk]

You're right about a downside of Netflix being a lack of special features and stuff that you normally find on DVDs. They did a nice special on Stranger Things, so maybe if Hill House continues to be this popular they may come up with something similar. I’ve heard that some of their originals still have special features on the DVD release, I just remember being really bummed at their being zero extras for their Daredevil releases, even though you’d think there was so much they could get into with the fight choreography just for starters. Netflix obviously prefer people to choose streaming on Netflix over physical releases though

[infinitewhale]

This was a show for me that I didn't care for until I rewatched it. I can't say as I liked any of the characters, though I did find Hugh, Luke and Nell sympathetic, probably because they have the biggest range of before/after.

I didn't find it too scare, but it was definitely interesting. It did the jump scares well. The bit when Theo and Hugh see Olivia in the home was very well done. Usually they cut away, but they show the shadow coming, then the ghost and it just keeps coming. That's good horror.

I think the next episodes will be about the old ghosts. It kind of has to be unless Steve sells the house or something. I hope for Poppy Hill or the Gratins from her nursery rhyme.

[frelling_tralk]

I was surprised at just how flawed they were prepared to make the Crain’s, especially Steve and Shirley, I seem to come across nothing but dislike for them online lol. Luke and Nell were probably the easiest characters to sympathise with, especially when the audience knew they were right all along and Steve was just being pig-hearted/stubborn, although I also liked that the show kind of kept it up in the air over whether Steve might just be right about it all being mental illness, until the final episodes finally flat out confirm that the ghosts are absolutely meant to be real

Poppy Hill is who I’d be the most interested in following as well, although I wonder if they’d find it a bit limiting to focus exclusively on telling the past story of the house? I think they could make a fantastic season from that, but my guess is that it’s more likely that they will have a new family moving in somehow, and perhaps try and incorporate the history of the house more in flashbacks?

[ladydreamer]

I would definitely go for 13 episodes of Poppy Hill, but I don't they could (or would want to) sustain a show just on telling the old stories.

[infinitewhale]

I didn't mind Shirley that much until the end. I got her and her need to control and fix things. It was actually the bit at the very end with her husband that really put me off her. I don't know. Her asking him to listen and understand while after spending the whole show jumping to conclusions about others just rubbed me wrong.

I think Luke and Nell get more of a reaction because you see them go from being the two sweet little kids to wrecks and you see just how much it affected them, whereas the other three are the way they are because it's their personality, not because of Hill house.

but my guess is that it’s more likely that they will have a new family moving in somehow,

I hope not, but it would be the most effective cost-wise. Netflix doesn't have a good record of S2s to me. I'm not terribly hopeful about it or Sabrina after S2s of Stranger Things and 13 Reasons, which I didn't care for at all.

[ladydreamer]

I absolutely loved this show, and I've rewatched it three times. I did love Nell and Theo's episodes the best, but I have to say I thought the Bowler Hat ghost was on the level of creepy as the Gentlemen from BtVS.

I both do and don't want the Crains back. I want them to be happy now, as much as they can be, assuming Nell can come visit them, since she apparently has the ability to do that if she chooses, but I also want the ongoing adventures of Theo the psychic lesbian traveling the country and solving paranormal crimes with her girlfriend and maybe her little brother.

[frelling_tralk]

The Gentleman never really scared me much, but yes the Bowler Hat ghost absolutely did, that whole sequence of Luke hiding under the bed was one of the creepiest of the series to me

And I believe they’re confirmed in interviews that they see the Crain families story as all wrapped up, so I’m not expecting to see the living members back, although I’m wondering if that also extends to the three ghosts who are still residents of Hill House, it would seem to make sense for them to have cameos in any future season now that they are a part of the house?

[ladydreamer]

That does make sense. You'd have to keep Olivia away from any new occupants, so Nell and Hugh might show up just to warn them.

[frelling_tralk]

The actress who plays Olivia seems pretty keen to remain with the series too, although she’s also suggested that they might make it an anthology where the actors come back to play brand new characters, so that could be a possibility as well I suppose

[waltzmatildah]

I watched this recently but actually didn't find it scary at all. I found the (attempted) horror was really repetitive and telegraphed and in the end just became really cringey. I really wished they'd stopped trying with the 'scary stuff' because the story itself could have been really fascinating to me as a psychological drama.

I definitely seem to be in the minority!

[frelling_tralk]

I have seen a few people talk about it not being scary at all (outside of the jumpscare in episode 8 which did seem to get most people), so maybe it depends on how much horror you watch in general? I don’t watch much, so to me it was incredibly tense sitting through the buildups, but I can see it not working for someone who has watched a lot of horror films already and knows where the scene is likely going to go

I do agree that it was following the family that interested me the most though, honestly I didn’t really enjoy the horror as much because at times it got a bit too scary for me and I found it hard to stay focused on the screen, so we definitely seem to be polar opposites in that respect *g*

[waltzmatildah]

It seems like, long story short and for different reasons, the show could have done without the (attempted!) horror and gone with a more dedicated focus on the family dynamics! We'd all have been happier/more engaged!

[rogueslayer452]

The Haunting of Hill House is precisely the kind of thing I love in storytelling, especially of the horror genre, which I'm a huge fan of. I'm just so amazed by the quality of the writing, the cinematography (especially the long shots used in many episodes, particularly the sixth episode), the performances by all the actors esp the child actors, the structure of the story, the mystery unfolding episode by episode. It was so well crafted with so many details that I didn't notice until upon rewatching or things I started reading that the more I learn, the more impressed I am with how it all comes together.

but the exploration of him as someone who was in complete denial in the beginning and gradually having his eyes opened was also very interesting to meExactly. I'm one of the minority who actually really likes Steve's character, because he's deeply flawed due to this intense denial that I liked how we see the gradual reopening of his eyes to what terrified him and have him finally accept what he couldn't initially face. All of them

[frelling_tralk]

:nods: The cinematography and direction really were something special, you could tell that they put a LOT of care in the show. I’m curious to read the original novel now actually, although I understand that it’s only very very loosely based on it. It seems like that hurt the show for some critics a little bit actually, the av club reviews were very negative in the beginning because of disappointment over it not being a straight retelling of the book. But then Stephen King is a big fan of the book as well, and he was really gushing over the tv show, so I think people just need to approach it with an open mind

I just find this kind of exploration fascinating. It's why I like his arc because he started out being in major denial to the point of being a dick (a coping mechanism, not a healthy since it destroyed many of his relationships with those he loves) to finally giving into that acceptance and understanding.I agree, I’ve seen a lot of quite over the top hate for him and Shirley, but I viewed Steve as the main protagonist more or