The Skeleton Key (2005)

Synopsis: Kate Hudson plays Caroline Ellis whose a nurse who gets too attached her patients. She quits her job at the hospice because they don't care enough. So she decides to self own and go work for a woman whose husband is about to die from a stroke. The house you see if messed up, of course. And of course it has to be scariest house in New Orleans and just to make things interesting, the house is in a swamp! Oh yeah did I mention that the house is like over a century old? So she works in this house and of course there's a tale and of course the residents of this house has some sort of affliction because of this tale. Now before you stop reading this synopsis know that this movie takes a drastic turn from other movies even though the plot sounds so generic. And in a lot of ways it is, as Caroline goes to uncover the horrifying secrets of the house, but in a lot of ways it does things just a little bit different to make it a lot more interesting.

Should You Watch It? The best way to describe this movie is a combination of other movies. The storyline is very much like The Excorcism of Emily Rose while the cinematography is similar to the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Finally the movie has a very neat, albeit, predictable twist, and although it will never rival Saw for ending, the thrill scenes does more than make up for it.

Things to Watch Out For: This movie is very American. Can't get more American than having it in the south but what this movie does so brilliantly is that it takes direction from Asian horror cinema and uses psychology, sleight of mind, and camera misdirection instead of the usual American shock and scream formula. The ending does require a lot of audience interactivity which might sour some people who hate to think during a movie.

Things You Don't Expect: Kate Hudson is pretty great in this movie and although she's not playing some girl looking for love in a comic way this time, she still carries over her cute charm to this film which makes you fall in love with her character and as a result, makes the ending all that more bitter sweet. New appreciation for her as a versatile actress is well deserved.

Final Comments:
Story: 8.5
Direction: 7.0
Acting: 7.0
Cinematography: 6.5
Music/Sound: 6.0

Final Score: 7.7