And several years later it STILL creeps me out...
http://rarehorror.com/2015/05/12/the-haunting-of-julia-1977-review/
Spot on, this movie is so under-rated and extremely creepy. I still get scared at the end, can't bear to look at the screen.
Anybody else see this as a child and are still freaked out?
I saw it the first time on vhs, in 1994, when i was 15.
I remember how i was freaked out and at the same time haunted by the visuals and soundtrack.
The last scene especially, i remember how i found it was unexpected, sad, shocking and beautiful at the same time.
Underrated masterpiece of the 70's.
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First saw it when I was around 13. The ending scene really creeped me out. Something about the music and mood of that final shot gets under my skin. To me, that's why I love horror as it's not about gore but an atmosphere. To this day, I vividly remember the creepy feeling I had after it was over and it's 3am and I have to make my way up to my bedroom in a dark house. Another movie that I distinctly remember being freaked out like this was the end of Invasion of the body snatchers (1978).
shareI saw this as a kid in the 80s. I was probably like 8 years old and yes it freaked me out. This was back when TBS would show really good horror movies from the 70s on the weekends. I'd say a great deal of horror movies from the 70s were amazing because it wasn't so much about gore but more about the mood and score. This movie along with Alice Sweet Alice hit the nail on the head for me as far as creepiness that literally still haunt me to this day. There are a few others like The Changeling with George C Scott and Dark Night of the Scarecrow but this one tops them all.
share"it wasn't so much about gore but more about the mood and score."
It was about mood and score indeed, but also about characterization, you really feel empathy for the lead character's sorrow and impossible quest, thanks to Mia Farrow's great acting and Richard Loncraine's sensitive intelligent direction.
What is mostly lacking in most of the "horror" movies" are adult, mature, character driven screenplays, great acting and mood, like in this film "Full Circle"...the ending scene is really one of the best i've seen in a movie, after all these years!
@guigui
I couldn't agree more about the horror movies of today. They don't develop the characters at all so they don't feel relatable nor can you sympathize with them. It seems to be all about over acting and gore gore gore and screaming teens who do all the wrong things.
I remember when I saw the original Halloween. Not only was I creeped out by the score and feel of it all but I related so much to Jamie Lee Curtis's character. Fast forward to years later. Rob Zombie does a re-make of Halloween and just ruined everything. It was a bloody gore mess and not only that, for the first time, I really wanted Michael Meyers to kill his sister. She was so annoying and I couldn't relate to her character one bit. Maybe Rob was going for this effect but I kinda doubt it.
I draw the same parallel with the original Carrie vs the remake entitled Carrie the Rage. As a lifelong fan of horror, it just seems like directors have lost that touch or something or perhaps our generation simply appreciated more of the mood, score and characterization of horror movies. I've read many comments from youngsters on Youtube who complained how boring Full Circle was. And of course I'm always so shocked by this. It doesn't make sense to me.
"I remember when I saw the original Halloween. Not only was I creeped out by the score and feel of it all but I related so much to Jamie Lee Curtis's character. Fast forward to years later. Rob Zombie does a re-make of Halloween and just ruined everything. It was a bloody gore mess and not only that, for the first time, I really wanted Michael Meyers to kill his sister. She was so annoying and I couldn't relate to her character one bit. Maybe Rob was going for this effect but I kinda doubt it."
So true! i don't like at all Rob Zombie's movies so i wasn't expecting a good film, to be honest! John Carpenter, a true master, is right when he says that RZ missed the feel of his original "Halloween". "Halloween" is a timeless classic, like "Full Circle" it's mostly a stylish widescreen movie, very moody and almost devoid of blood, avoiding cheap scares to build its tension and storytelling skillfully...and yes, another case of an engaging lead character...Donald Plesance is doing a fine job too! One of Carpenter's best films.
"I've read many comments from youngsters on Youtube who complained how boring Full Circle was."
Maybe were they expecting cheap scares, bloody deaths, frantic editing, overbearing sound mix, teenagers and an happy ending with easy answers to the film's mystery?
Again, like "Halloween", it's a smart stylish movie which takes its time to build an haunting atmosphere...and overall an adult, mature movie, not so easy for the youngsters i guess!
@guigui
Ya know you learn something new everyday. I had no idea John Carpenter made that comment about RZ's remake of Halloween but he was definitely spot on. I tried to watch RZ's recent new horror called 31 and yet again it just didn't do it for me. I'm sure teens liked it though....lots of guts, blood, cheap scares and all the above you mentioned.
Sadly, I think it's safe to say, the days of good American horror movies are long gone. You can find some good Asian ones though. Lots of Korean, Chinese and Japanese directors still have that horror finesse we were so accustomed to back in the day. When I can think of some, I'll come back and list them for you. You've probably seen a few already though.
I actually got into watching Asian cinema because of their quality horror movies. While they do have their bad ones, they haven't gone all out and abandoned good horror movies full of mood and good scores like American directors have. And I really hope they don't. The selection is already thin to begin with.
It didn't give me nightmares..... I was an adult when I first saw this. It did and still does stay with me for several days after I watch it.
It has that creepy vibe. It also makes you think. every time I see it I can't help going back and forth.... Is it the ghost who is haunting Julia or is it julia's broken mind, and she is really doing these bad things??? Perhaps it's both?
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I took it at face value the first time too. After watching it again, years later, I came to IMDb to see what other folks were saying about it. I was surprised that they were even discussing the possibility of her being responsible for any deaths.
It was back to the drawing board for me. Another viewing made me think about it more. It's the way it's filmed. [spoiler]Even that scene where she's under the covers and you assume that someone is touching her. It's really her. She's touching herself.[/spoiler]