Nothing is more interesting than a movie that is unpredictable, especially horror flicks. I was truly impressed by The Innocents, directed in 1961 by Jack Clayton and based on Henry James's 1898 The Turn of the Screw. It kept my attention throughout the entire movie. It is by far the best horror flick I have ever seen.
From the beginning, the governess, Miss Giddens in the movie, as depicted by Deborah Kerr, is an elegant, sophisticated woman that keeps the audience focused on her. She has sole responsibility of these wonderful, mysterious children, but it is obvious that they are hiding something.
There is a lot of foreshadowing in the movie especially with the scenes with the children. There are also subtle hints as to where the movie is going. At one point Mrs. Grose (Megs Jenkins) refers to the uncle (Michael Redgrave) liking young women as governesses. It is odd because it infers that he has had a lot of different governesses. Mrs. Grose also refers to a mysterious him, who was too free with all of them but backtracks to the uncle when the governess challenges her.
Flora's (Pamela Franklin) fascination with secrets gave me the idea that she was definitely not the average child. There was something in her and Miles'(Martin Stephens) eyes. Miles' mysterious dismissal from school also was a clue. The clues and hints were so subtle that they did not give away the whole movie. They kept me wondering. The children were just mysterious.
There were several ghost encounters. When Mrs. Grose tells the governess about Ms. Jessel and Peter Quint, it is apparent that there is something severely wrong; and it led me to believe that the ghosts were real. When she is told of the story of Peter, it leads me to believe that it could have actually happened.
The ending with Miles came as a complete shock and was completely unpredictable. I was in utter shock and in disbelief. There was never a point in the movie where I was bored or uninterested. This was a classic horror flick and it is how they should be made today. I was completely impressed.
