HAUNTER is a pretty dreadful teen horror film, which is a pity given that the guy who directed it is none other than Vincenzo Natali, who of course made the wonderful CUBE. He actually references CUBE throughout this movie in terms of some of the plot twists and single-setting location, although this is a very different kind of product.
HAUNTER is your usual haunted house horror with a twist: the main character is stuck in a time loop that sees her going through events time and again. THE OTHERS is a definite inspiration here, but it doesn't count for much when the film is so murky and unappealing. I have no idea who Abigail Breslin is or why she was cast in the central role, but she's completely out of her depth and impossible to take seriously as the lead.
There's one cool horror scene set around a family dinner table which is absolutely spoilt by Breslin's fake and cheesy reaction shots, no matter how cool the effects are otherwise. And the film as a whole feels slow and unfocused, another one influenced by the success of TV'S American Horror Story. Stephen McHattie (A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE) makes a good villain but even he is underutilised here.
HAUNTER is your usual haunted house horror with a twist: the main character is stuck in a time loop that sees her going through events time and again. THE OTHERS is a definite inspiration here, but it doesn't count for much when the film is so murky and unappealing. I have no idea who Abigail Breslin is or why she was cast in the central role, but she's completely out of her depth and impossible to take seriously as the lead.
There's one cool horror scene set around a family dinner table which is absolutely spoilt by Breslin's fake and cheesy reaction shots, no matter how cool the effects are otherwise. And the film as a whole feels slow and unfocused, another one influenced by the success of TV'S American Horror Story. Stephen McHattie (A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE) makes a good villain but even he is underutilised here.