Filmmaker Ti West is fast becoming a personal favorite. I recently watched “The House of the Devil” and found it excellent; aesthetically pleasing with its cinematography and a perfect degree of suspenseful scares.
Yankee Pedlar Inn was constructed in 1891 in Torrington, Connecticut, and has a long-standing tradition of ghostly sightings and purported encounters. The staff believe the building to be haunted. The story goes that whilst filming “The House of the Devil,” West and crew stayed at the inn and experienced paranormal shenanigans of their own, and voila! West had the idea for his next film.
“The Innkeepers” was released in 2011. It’s another time compared to today. No smartphones. A more cordial political climate. And a culture obsessed with the paranormal. Filmed on location, the movie includes the Victorian-styled charm of the Yankee Pedlar Inn on its final weekend in operation.
The Innkeepers
Claire (Sara Paxton) and Luke (Pat Healy) are the titular clerks. What’s established immediately is the close friendship between the two. Claire is cute and quirky; Luke is a bit of a nerd. Both believe the Inn the be haunted, with Luke running a paranormal website on the side. Watching the two characters interact as platonic friends is refreshing and thoroughly enjoyable.
The hotel is closing permanently at the end of the weekend. There are only a few guests, most prominently Leanne Rease-Jones (Kelly McGillis), a former actor turned psychic. The halls are dark. The rooms are empty. The outdated building looks like a vessel from another world.
Sara Paxton is a wonderful horror lead. She possesses a timeless look; short emo hair, skinny jeans and sneaks – timeless to the aughts (which I find myself missing more and more). Claire is the main character, on screen in every scene and Sara Paxton is fun to watch as she spends the evening exploring the empty halls and rooms with an EVP recorder and a curiosity that at times runs afoul of common sense.
Yankee Pedlar Inn
Ti West filmed scenes at the actual hotel and the movie is so much better for it. It’s the opposite of a modern place, with exposed radiators in the room and tawdry wallpaper you can almost smell through the screen. The vibes for creepiness are everywhere Claire goes. Sans ghosts an empty hotel is a perfect setting for horror.
Like “The House of the Devil,” Ti West doesn’t bog the movie down with needless jump scares. There are some, but nothing that gets in the way of the suspense. Two of the scares (I’ll call piano and sheet) are two of the best I have ever watched.
My complaints seem to parallel critics of the time. The tone of the film flips from slapstick comedy to terror at the drop of a switch. My readers know I can be harsh on a film’s score, and this one is painful. Its too loud and never matches what is happening on screen. There are some genuinely excellent scary moments but at times I thought I was watching an episode of Are You Afraid of the Dark.
I liked “The Innkeepers” less than “The House of the Devil.” But there’s enough good to make it worth checking out this Spooky Movie Season. Filmmaker Ti West is someone for horror junkies to keep an eye on.
