“What Lies Beneath” is a great blend of horror and mystery. It was directed by Robert Zemeckis and stars Michelle Pfeiffer and Harrison Ford – top tier talent for a genre often overlooked by mainstream Hollywood. The result isn’t perfect but proves it can in fact be done.
It was released in 2000 – amidst blockbusters like “The Sixth Sense” and “The Others.” Both of which featured A+ talent and direction. It’s also the end of an era socially. The 90s are done. The 80s are long done. Look on the bright side – the internet, social media, and excessive CGI are on their way!
Michelle Pfeiffer stars as Claire Spencer; a cellist residing in a lakeside estate in Vermont with her new husband, Norman (Harrison Ford) a prestigious scientist at a local college. In the style of “Rear Window” Claire believes her next-door neighbor has murdered his wife. Norman doesn’t believe her. She experiences paranormal things. Roll credits!
Scream Queen
Like Nicole Kidman in the aforementioned “The Others,” Michelle Pfeiffer demonstrates a keen ability to be a horror lead. Claire Spencer is a character that has some baggage. Her first husband died. Her only daughter is leaving for college. She gave up being a cellist to marry Norman. The tone switches from horror to mystery and Pfeiffer handles both with a knack that makes me wish she had taken more roles like this.
Harrison Ford is one of the all-time greats. Interestingly, he takes a backseat in this role and plays it well. They work well as a couple, and both are fun actors to watch on screen. I can buy Ford as a college professor and married to Claire. Some of the characters actions are a bit head-scratching but that’s the script not the star.
I jumped
“What Lies Beneath” wastes no time in getting scary. From the opening scene, director Robert Zemeckis includes subtle tension and straight out scares to propel the story. I jumped in my seat several times. There are no cheap scares – every bit of terror is earned.
As Claire pieces together the mystery, the viewer is left questioning if the house is haunted, or if she is just plain nuts. Some of the writing goes astray but the scary parts are scary. Zemeckis knows his way around behind scenes and the finished product is well presented.
Flaws
I suppose having actors like Michelle Pfeiffer and Harrison Ford makes you wary of too much editing. The first problem with “Beneath” is the 130-minute run time. Horror should never overstay its welcome, and this is no exception.
The pacing is fine but it’s too long by a good 12 minutes. The other issue I had was the ending. The final sequence calls believability into question. I spotted the “twist” a mile away and found the actions of one of the characters to be unrealistic.
“What Lies Beneath” is a solid movie. It has scares, tension, and mystery. Two alpha actors make up for the sloppy script. Its mix of horror and suspense make it watchable at any time of year.
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