Winchester (2018) Review
Spoiler-free so you can read before you watch
Horrorific content by Yo Adrian on November 13th, 2019 | Movie Review, Worth Watching? | Haunted, Supernatural, Madness, Featured Supernatural, Mystery
It's about an heiress to the Winchester firearm fortune who lives in a sprawling, but architecturally bizarre, mansion which is supposedly designed to trap the ghosts of those killed by her family's Winchester rifles.
Winchester was directed by Michael Spierig (who also directed Daybreakers and Undead) and Peter Spierig (who also directed Jigsaw and Predestination), stars Helen Mirren, Jason Clarke (from Trust) and Sarah Snook (from Jessabelle).
Terror is building
Winchester is a period horror similar to movies like A Haunting in Connecticut and The Sixth Sense, where ghosts use jump scares as a way to reach out to the living for help. And I don't mean that in a bad way, Winchester isn't reliant on jump scares, it just utilizes them along with other fear factors like suspense and atmosphere. It's also similar to Insidious: The Last Key in that a woman with a direct connection to the dead is burdened with the responsibility to save those around her from sinister spirits.
The movie is visually stunning and high quality from start to finish. The acting is convincing and the score is subtle but effective, both of which really help pull you into the story. There are a few tropes littered around and there's some predictability, but neither got in the way, it really is an entertaining watch.
Worth Watching?
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