Leofwine_draca THE UNINVITED is one of the most well-regarded ghost stories of the 1940s, although seen today it's a rather genteel effort and certainly not frightening, unlike towering movies of the genre such as THE HAUNTING. This one sees a jovial Ray Milland moving into a beachfront property, only to discover that it's already occupied. It's a sedate and subtle affair, with the supernatural horror limited to just a couple of mildly effective SFX scenes, but it does have plenty of atmosphere and an intriguing murder mystery back story to keep it going. Milland proves a warm and kindly presence this early on in his career (as opposed to his turns a decade later in the likes of DIAL M FOR MURDER) but the emphasis is very much on the female presence, both real and (is it?) imaginated. Silent film star Donald Crisp plays an imposing role in support, and there are some nice indoor visuals here which reminded me of those in THE SPIRAL STAIRCASE.

lasttimeisaw An atmospheric haunted-house yarn nestled on the coast of Cornwall, Broadway workman Lewis Allen's directorial feature debut THE UNINVITED is not a spine-tingling scare-fest one might expect it to be, but a decorous melodrama seeking out the truth about a past tragedy tinged with a tint of Gothic spookiness owing to Charles Lang's stupendous Oscar-worthy camera work through minimal torchlight and candlelight in the mansion where the London siblings Rick (Milland) and Pamela (Hussey) Fitzgerald dwell. The mansion is called Windward House, which the siblings buy from Commander Beech (a lumpen Crisp) for a knockdown price. The Commander is very cagey about the history of the house and whose only intention is to get the pecuniary profit to secure the future for his 20-year-old granddaughter Stella Meredith (Russell), he brazenly makes it clear that they don't want anything to do with the Fitzgeralds after the deal is cut and dried, intriguing, isn't it? It is not every day someone is offering to buy a jinxed house. But an impressionable and spontaneous Stella takes a liking for the debonair but expansive Rick, confides in him that she feels a strong yet strange connection toward the house where she has been forbidden to set her foot since she was three, when her mother fell to her death from the escarpment in front. So, apparently it is the apparition of Mary, Stella's mother who torments the new residents with the nightly wailing, chilling draft and pungent scent of mimosa (a clever olfactory indicator as we have to take the characters at their word), but the plot thickens when more details are disclosed: Stella's father had a gypsy mistress Carmel, and the rumor says that it is her who murdered Stella's mother then died of illness afterward. At this step, the ghosts become plural, the rub is whether it is Mary's benevolent calling or Carmel's malignant hex that draws Stella back to the place? Or, as we are all fully aware, there would be a final reveal to overturn all the previous presumptions, after the fuss of a seance and the intervention of a formal nurse, Mary's best friend Miss Holloway (Skinner), there is something fishy about Stella's real identity. Not quite often a pair of siblings is put in the center of a household, Milland and Hussey make do with their rivalry-free interaction and instill a patina of sangfroid which doesn't seem to be congruent with the mystical happenings, and willfully gives the movie a jocund vibe, if they are not spooked, how can we, armchair rubberneckers, be startled through vicariousness? Forever remembered by Victor Young's theme strain STELLA BY STARLIGHT, a fresh-faced Gail Russell is pleasant to behold, but couldn't be bothered to register a convincing reaction after receiving the bolt from the blue, which mars this otherwise fairly sustained suspense (along with Rick's half- hearted final smack-down with Mary's misty specter). In fact, the best part comes from a scrumptiously scenery-chewing Cornelia Otis Skinner, flagrantly furnishes the story with the requisite venom which one cannot get enough in the genre of uncanny mysteries, which, if really is your cuppa, bearing in mind that Jack Clayton's THE INNOCENTS (1961) is a far superior achievement to be amazed, transfixed and awe-struck.

Alex da Silva Musician Ray Milland (Rod) and his sister Ruth Hussey (Pam) buy a house on a whim whilst holidaying in Devon. It seems quite a cheap price and the purchase is conducted over a few sentences. The owner Donald Crisp (Commander Beech) seems very keen for the sale. He also stipulates to his grand-daughter Gail Russell (Stella) that she is never to visit the house. It is where she spent the first 3 years of her life. She disobeys as she develops a relationship with Milland. And the house has some other occupants ………….. unworldly ones….It's an enjoyable film with a strong cast although Russell plays things rather too vulnerably for a 20 year-old. Milland throws in some humorous touches but he succeeds in keeping things in the scary, spooky film genre as opposed to the comedy ghost story genre, which is always a let-down. So, he should be congratulated for making the crossover. This is a good ghost story with genuine chills, scary scenes, a story with a twist and a great ghost effect. Lots of atmosphere in this one.

Spondonman This was a lovely ghost film from Hollywood's Golden Age, with an impeccable lustrous production from Paramount and an excellent array of actors to put the hokum across. And it is hokum – there's nothing wrong with that at all, and usually I prefer it that way; usually it's much better than being considered capital letter Art.An erudite brother and sister are smitten by and decide to buy a windswept quaint house on the Cornish coast which although it was signalled to them in various ways prior to purchase, turned out to have a houseful of secrets. After a degree of ghostly detective work the Past (a mere 17 years previous) gave up a torrid love affair, an illegitimate baby, murder, lesbians, a seance and above all a seemingly malevolent ghost – or two. And by the end the portly Ray Milland was going to shack up with a young Gail Russell, while his sister Ruth Hussey was being sized up by the always avuncular looking Alan Napier. Yes, it's a post-Rebecca woman's picture par excellence, novel written by Dorothy Macardle. In civilised Western society the ladies rightly or wrongly are perceived to always speak from a position of Belief in the Afterlife, the gentlemen always from a position of Scoffing. Although main man Milland initially frivolously vacillates overall this film is in no Doubt: ghosts exist as surely as there has to be a point in living. It's all done very well with a spooky atmosphere you could cut with a knife. And dim or dark rooms or passages, creepy studio sets and a flowery romantic script acted with dignity and straight faces and with some classic crackpot wispy dialogue that might make the ladies nod their heads sagely and the gentlemen guffaw loudly. In that sense it's probably more comparable to Now Voyager than to The Innocents. It has a rushed ending that doesn't invite scrutiny, but it certainly doesn't outstay its invitation.I still love this wonderful film even though I can be even more frivolous - but hopefully more consistent - than Ray Milland! Except, I too believe in ghosts