Saw an early screening of this and it was fantastic. One of the best thriller/ghost/horror movies I have ever seen. Kate Hudson rules.

Listen, I think what we're all forgetting here is that she runs around in nice lingerie for the majority of the movie. Let's take this movie for what it's worth and enjoy that at least.

Uh, no; the critics are pretty much right— in fact, maybe too generous. It's not even slightly good. Unfortunately, it would've been better just by the full filming of Kate's yayas. Yep. Stay away.

This was a good movie, although it wasn't all that frightening. The twist at the end was great. (Matt M's review should be deleted because he just took parts from every bad review to make his own-look)

It was average fair for a current horror movie, but there was so much wasted space, and the twist was glaring and obvious. This was one of those movies that felt like it should have been a 22 minute Tales from the Crypt episode - and dragging it out to feature length fell short.

Wasted performances by Rowlands and Hudson. Directing was awful. The film had potential, but falls flat on the floor.

I liked this movie! Being set in the South, in a huge old run-down mansion made it all the more creepy! The acting was good and the characters believible. I loved the ending and how you had to run back in your mind to pick up the clues. Anyone who didn't get it must have been taking the "remedy!"

If yo're from NoLA or the area you get it. Strong acting, interesting twist. Always love to see Hudson and Rowland act.

My wife and I didn't understand the ending. Would someone please explain it to us? Kate Hudson acquitted herself suprisingly well as an actress. John Hurt was particularly effective and engaging.

Pretty good up until that worthless twist ending.

The opening shots of sunlight turning rain in the moss into jewels captured my eyes, and the soundtrack hooked right into my heart. Like Caroline, I entered the Devereaux world an unbeliever, but mood, pace, atmosphere, and evocative scenery banked securely on a haunting score drew me in. It's worth more than one viewing and run, don't walk, to buy the score.

Suspenseful movie and pretty good acting, but if you've seen Burnt Offerings (from 1976) and Die Die My Darling! (from the 1960s), you've already seen it. It is not an original movie -- it is a remake.

Not the scariest film out there but the intriguing storyline makes up for it. I absolutely detested/adored the ending. It’s so frustrating yet so good. Definitely recommend it.

It is a movie intended to scare and frighten the audience. What is most frightening and scary is that some reputable critics and newspapers found it worthy of positive comments and recommendations. There is no doubt that, as badly written as this film is, it has a cast that tries very hard to make it work. This is Kate Hudson’s movie and appearing in almost every scene, she does an outstanding job. Gena Rowlands, too, overweight and overbearing, likewise acts quite well. Unfortunately, the film seeks to develop and follow a crescendo of horror until the last fourth when, like so many of its characters, it dies and lets the viewer down. Simply stated, it’s just too hard to follow the ending and to make sense of what it tries vainly and unsuccessfully to accomplish and explain. We leave the movie with a sense of loss since we just can’t quite figure it out and the writer, the real culprit here, does little or nothing to help us. Although humor is not a good analogy, remember the shaggy dog stories. The joke takes a half hour to tell and, pow, there is no punch line. This movie builds and builds and builds and then, someone takes away the safety net and we fall hard on the "it doesn’t make sense" floor of an ending. The movie receives a 6.0 rating proving the old adage, once again, that good acting and bad writing doth not a good film make.… Expand

Not too bad overall, though the story was thin and the mood somewhat lacking in actual suspense.

I dont know what it is with critics these days, but it seems like they expect movies to wipe their ass and feed them. STOP already with giving low scores to movies that are above average. This movie was average and offered an interesting storyline along with some thrills. Great acting/ nice story/ good cinematography. Its definetley worth a rental.

This is one of those films where the actors and director turn a sub-par movie into a fairly good one. Now, I won't be giving away the slow, drawn out plot - but I will say it has one of the best endings I've seen in a good while. What's more suprising is how many people won't understand it (the ending). I left the theater and had to explain what happened to my friends, there's one quick and not-so-obvious event... that if you miss it, you miss everything - bad film making, this is not. What IS bad is the fact that it takes so very, very long to get going. During the duration of explanation after explanation after Hoodoo remark, nothing scary happens. Not ONCE did I jump or say "holy s**t"... like I would expect to in a horror film. I really stopped caring about the writing about halfway in, I was just trying to figure out who our "criminal" was. It all makes sense if you pay attention, but it's so dully written and shock free that you may not even care. Still, if you stick with it you'll get to enjoy Iain Softley's sublime direction and Kate Hudson's performance (which should have been saved for another script). John Hurt gives a wonderful show as Ben - he has no dialouge but seems to be the best actor in the film. Gena Rowlands also gives this sub-par script her all as Violet. Sadly... people with scary eyes and cheep, obivious 'jump' shots don't make a good movie. If more attention had been paid to the story and dialouge by Ehren Kruger, we may have had a new classic on our hands. But, I urge you to see (or at least rent it) this flick for the great ending. It is really that neat. To bad the rest wasn't.… Expand

Weak on all counts, this is one of those movies where people do things that make no sense except to move the story forward to the "shocking" ending. The acting was OK for most of the leads, but without a story, so what? Nothing about this movie felt authentic and I actually left the theater annoyed at the cynicism that says of the viewers "they won't notice or care". P.S. When others refer to it as unoriginal, check out the old 70s gothic: BURNT OFFERINGS. Looks like the filmmakers cribbed a good 80% of their movie straight out of that one.… Expand

This was a great movie. Sure, it had some cheap scares, but it was still good. Great ending, too.

A decent movie. The acting was excellent - Kate Hudson is always wonderful. It never quite reached the climax that it was building to, but I forgive it, because it was an interesting story and I don't like to be scared that much anyway!

deceitful advertsing. Scenes from the trailer were not even in the final cut of movie.

Loved it! very scary!

Great premise and idea. Awful execution for first half, great execution for the second half.

There was one good scare at this movie, and that was a loud roaring of thunder at exactly the right time to cause a jump. Hopefully that will alert you to the extent of this movie's horror. It's just not scary. You have a haunted house, (done well in The Grudge,) you have a creepy setting, (done well in Secret Window,) and you have a concept that isn't often seen in mainstream horror. So why does this movie suck this badly? It's not scary. The characters are flat. There is almost no action. The "twist" ending really isn't anything special, and the fact that they're now promoting it as "The next Sixth Sense" is really just going to disappoint people. It's a nice twist, kind of, but when they are using that to promote the movie, it had better be an AWESOME twist.… Expand

What an ending! But I don't want to spill any suspense ;-) I enjoyed this movie from start to finish.

If Caroline (Kate Hudson) is supposed to be a prospective nurse, she should probably make a bigger deal over her patient's ability to crawl out of his room, knowing that he was diagnosed with a massive stroke. This incident, in which the geriatric man somehow survives a tumble from his roof, seems to be forgotten by the hospice worker. If she remembered that a temporary awakening of the body is atypical of stroke victims, "Skeleton Key" would've been a lot shorter. But if Caroline was smarter, we'd be deprived of the unintentionally funny moment when she runs around the house with a jar of dirt.… Expand

A very well-done thriller. One of the more underrated films of 2005. First of all, you have some supremely talented actors who could probably make any script work. Also, the screenplay is very intelligent. The characters are fairly fleshed out, and the story never veers over the top. The twist is a corkscrew in and of itself, strengthening everything that came before it. In fact, it may take moviegoers two viewings to realize it's true power. To top it all off, the movie is beautifully designed and photographed. A solid rating from me.… Expand

Painful to watch a fine cast wasted in such a horrible film.

I really liked it at first but it's one of those movies that tries to be original and shock you with a plot twist. Unfortunatly it just gave too many clues and it's very easy to figue out what's going on and it's annoying to watch the clueless protagonist. At least it gets props for a unstereotypical ending.

Suspenseful and heart-quickening, this thriller had me on the edge of my seat, hiding. The ending had me rooting for Caroline and her adventure. A+

Its like unintentionally funny multiplied itself by unintentionally funny and they canceled eachother out.

Suspensful and morraly correct, a product of fear with surprising sequences that will leave you haunted, masterful work, the climax is stunning!

Finally, what we've been waiting for, a good suspeseful film that delivers the scares! Kate Hudson does great. The movie kind of waddles for abit but picks up fine. Go see it!

Hokey, gothic ghost story devoid of a single genuine scare, belabored by a slow-moving, unoriginial plot. The big twist is sheer absurdity, and the cast members inhabit their roles with boredom and resentment for having to appear in this rickety, disastrous excuse for a horror film.

There were no truly scary moments in the entire film. It was so predictable yet entirely unbelievable. The ending really brought what a bad movie this was into full perspective. What a waste of a perfectly good evening.

Very s l o w moving, with an insipid plot, poor cinematography, and average acting. I had just finished reading "A Choir of Ill Children" and that novel has more substance and eerie charm in just a couple of pages. (It's also southern gothic.) If you must see this film, wait for the DVD.

I guess I'm one of the ones who got the ending... I thought the movie was alright, although not at all scary in my opinion. I'd explain the ending to others who posted on here, but I don't want to ruin it for everyone else. It gives you pieces to put together and even after the movie, if your brain works, you can continue to think about what actually took place and figure it out. If you can't get it the first time, see it again. An interresting movie. Kate Hudson is da bomb. Only a 7 though.… Expand

Horrible movie, plot with no originality and obvious twist, the onkly reason it got the 1 was for the near naked scene of kate.

I really had fun at this movie. The acting was a little off, and the dialog was shotty but the point is I did have fun. There is, as other users have said, an obvious plot, but that doesn't ruin the movie. It is kind of fun to see where they were going with the movie and what the outcome would be. Don't see if you are expecting to be scared, but do see if you are wanting to just sit back and not have to think.… Expand

Three days later this movie is still running thru my head. It's one of those movies that moves like the first few chapters of an undiscussed suspense novel.. Minimum Shock & Boo.. Unsure of where it's going to go but interesting enough to continue. But the ending made what preceded disturbing.