The Haunting in Connecticut

Plot

After a family is forced to relocate for their son's health, they begin experiencing supernatural behavior in their new home, which turns out to be a former mortuary.

Release Year: 2009

Rating: 5.8/10 (21,729 voted)

Critic's Score: 33/100

Director:
Peter Cornwell

Stars: Virginia Madsen, Martin Donovan, Elias Koteas

Storyline
Charts one family's encounter with the dark forces of the supernatural. When the Campbell family moves to upstate Connecticut, they soon learn that their charming Victorian home has a disturbing history: not only was the house a transformed funeral parlor where inconceivable acts occurred, but the owner's clairvoyant son Jonah served as a demonic messenger, providing a gateway for spiritual entities to crossover. Now terror awaits when Jonah, the boy who communicated with the dead, returns to unleash horror on the innocent and unsuspecting family.

Writers: Adam Simon, Tim Metcalfe

Cast:

Virginia Madsen
–

Sara Campbell

Kyle Gallner
–

Matt Campbell

Elias Koteas
–

Reverend Popescu

Amanda Crew
–

Wendy

Martin Donovan
–

Peter Campbell

Sophi Knight
–

Mary

Ty Wood
–

Billy Campbell

Erik J. Berg
–

Jonah

(as Erik Berg)

John Bluethner
–

Ramsey Aickman

D.W. Brown
–

Dr. Brooks

John B. Lowe
–

Mr. Sinclair

Adriana O'Neil
–

Chemo Nurse

Will Woytowich
–

Cop

James Durham
–

Matt's Cell Mate

Darren Ross
–

Paramedic #1

Taglines:
Some things cannot be explained.

Details

Official Website:
Official site |
Official site [Japan] |

Release Date: 27 March 2009

Filming Locations: Teulon, Manitoba, Canada

Opening Weekend: $23,004,765
(USA)
(29 March 2009)
(2732 Screens)

Gross: $55,325,526
(USA)
(10 May 2009)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min
 |
102 min
(extended cut)

Did You Know?

Trivia:

Ed Warren and Lorraine Warren, who are known for involvement in The Amityville Horror case, were investigators for this case.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible:
When the family is huddled on the bed, you can see reflections in the brass rails. (There is no fireplace lit [fire reflection] and no ghosts are present at that time.)

Quotes:

[reciting a poem]

Matt Campbell:
One bright day in the middle of the night, two dead boys got up to fight. Back to back they faced each other, drew their swords and shot each other. A deaf policeman heard the noise and came and killed those two dead boys.

User Review

Horror Grounded in Reality is Back, Finally!

Rating: 9/10


I'm sure it helped that I was in the right mood and the right
atmosphere when I saw this movie at a midnight screening at South by
Southwest, but The Haunting in Connecticut was a horror movie that
really struck a chord with me.

I'm a longtime fan of this genre, getting acquainted with all the old
classics and cult films through USA Saturday Night Horror when I was
young, and continuing to see and love newer ones, such as The Ring,
throughout college. However, when I go on a rant about the current
state of horror movies, I tell people that today's movies make you
heighten your sense of disbelief too much in order to be scared – I
call it "fantasy horror." There aren't enough movies like The Exorcist
anymore where it absolutely feels real, like something that has always
existed but you've just been lucky enough to avoid.

I loved The Haunting in Connecticut, because it is much closer to
reality horror than fantasy, and I suppose that's because it's based on
a true story. It just doesn't feel like it came straight out of
someone's imagination. It was the kind of movie where, not only did I
find myself wondering about the true story of the Snedeker family, but
when I went to sleep that night, I couldn't help pondering the history
of my own home and its previous tenants. If you're the type of person
who loves horror movies, I assume that's the exact creepy way you want
them to resonate.

Besides the background story, one of the other reasons I think this
movie worked was because of the performance of Kyle Gallner. This young
man plays a much more complex (and believable) protagonist than most of
the ones I've seen in horror films lately, as his character, Matt, has
a very familiar (and scary in its own right) disease that makes him
question whether the haunting is real, or a symptom of his sickness. I
venture to say that his character could have made an interesting movie
even BEFORE the paranormal activity starts, but Gallner was exceptional
in this role, and I think we'll still be talking about "the boy in The
Haunting in Connecticut," 10 years from now.

So for true horror movie fans, I definitely recommend checking this one
out. Sometimes there's nothing wrong with a horror movie based
completely in fantasyland, like Nightmare on Elm Street, but the
creepiest horror usually has a dose of reality. This film will scare
you, it will make you think and it will leave a lasting impression.