Written and directed by Mike Flanagan
Based on The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

Creator and director Mike Flanagan uses Shirley Jackson’s famous novel as a script to explore this house-as-body metaphor, and it does so with deep, precise tenderness. He creates a unique haunted house fable by using the empty halls of a cluttered mansion to tell the story of the disordered family that lives there.

The hidden ghosts presented in this production are not anonymous or random. It feels more like the world of the living is more trapped in their thoughts than the ghosts in the house. They need to overcome their traumas. It is not a paranormal story but a meditation on the distinctive way pain and trauma maim the living. Trauma builds walls. If not taken care of, they continue to rise. Soon, you are trapped; you may try to climb the stairs and scream out the windows, eager for a way out, lost in the maze of personal devastation. Some of us find an escape. Some of us don’t.

Anyway, it is an incredibly thought-provoking series. This isn’t your typical horror film; it’s a psychological masterpiece, taking horror to a whole new level. It has set new standards in filmmaking, challenging others to reach greater heights. Each viewer will have a unique experience depending on their life’s journey. You might connect with specific family struggles that resonate deep within. The characters are portrayed with such richness that, as human nature dictates, you can’t help but care for them in their various struggles. Oh, and it’s genuinely scary as hell!

Credits: Netflix