Review of The Changeling (1980) by Andrew H — 11 Nov 2014

The actual haunting of the house, where John Russell (Scott) resides, is handled with craftsmanship and delicacy by director Peter Medak. The tell-tale gothic mansion, the deep bass thuds in the house's walls like a giant's knocks, and the quiet whispering of a child's voice, make this a very ably made haunted house story.

While the story behind the haunting, and the search for the truth behind it, make for a really interesting mystery, it's such a strange assemblage of scenes. In the first part of the film we see Russell widowed and he begins teaching composition at a university.

When he begins to be haunted, he realizes it almost immediately, goes searching for the truth, and finds it. Russell is never frightened by the ghost, only inquisitive about its origins. He doesn't mind picking up human bones, threatening people, and talking to the ghost in question.

Even big old George C. Scott must get scared sometimes, but in this film he's fully self-possessed and seems unable to approach fear. The connection between him and his dead daughter is severed once we indulge in finding out the truth about the ghost, which makes me wonder why he's widowed at all.

While the film itself was intricate and complex in the best of ways, there really wasn't anything frightening about it, which is a shame when watching a film about a ghost story.