Review of The Haunting in Connecticut (2009) by Sasha R — 05 Jul 2013

It wasn't until about halfway through the film that I realized this sequel, in a bold/confusing/weird move, has absolutely nothing to do with the original, aside from the very tenuous plot connection of a family moving into a house where they experience the paranormal consequences of the actions of the previous tenants. On the one hand, not much more could likely have been milked out of the first family's story- on the other hand, we've seen sequels try to continue and up the ante on the paranormal activities of the same ghosts on different people. This was definitely a different choice- and apparently one that will be continued in the 3rd installment in the series, apparently set in New York.

In this sequel, ('inspired', 'based on', whatever, a true story) a family with a history of paranormal sensitivity moves to Georgia, followed shortly by the mother's sister, who is also prone to seeing spirits. When the two women were girls, they were often terrified by a "dark figure" only they could see and could sense was evil. Shortly after, the family's young daughter starts to have conversations with an invisible man and her mother begins to worry that her own neuroses are being visited upon her daughter. After consulting with several different types of experts, the family begins to learn the history behind their property and why their daughter might be experiencing these visitations. Partly through research and partly by accident they learn some uncomfortable truths about the violent past of the area and its inhabitants.

Things I liked:

-The setting. The deep, woodsy south is always a great setting for scares!

-The little girl. Her performance was the only one not utterly forgettable- not overdone, engaging, etc.

-The ultimate resolution: good setup for a haunting- not incredibly original but not overly hackneyed.

Meh:

-The adults. Sorry Chad. Not likeable or interesting enough to root for.

-Basically the whole middle. I don't even remember half of the experts or why we're supposed to care that the Mom had similar experiences as a little girl- and I'm totally confused as to how they're supposed to be related when it was a different house??

Overall, I THINK I liked it as well as or better than the original, which counts as success for a sequel, right? Or also shows that the original wasn't terrible but wasn't all that great either. I think I pretty much liked and disliked all the same components.