The Changeling (1980) Associated Film Distribution/Horror RT: 107 minutes Rated R (terror, disturbing images, some violent content) Director: Peter Medak Screenplay: William Gray and Diana Maddox Music: Rick Wilkins Cinematography: John Coquillon Release date: March 28, 1980 (US) Cast: George C. Scott, Trish Van Devere, Melvyn Douglas, Jean Marsh, John Colicos, Barry Morse, Madeleine Thornton-Sherwood, Helen Burns, Frances Hyland, Ruth Springford, Eric Christmas, Roberta Maxwell, Bernard Behrens, James B. Douglas, C.M. Gampel, Voldi Way, Michelle Martin, Janne Mortil. Box Office: $12M (US)
Rating: ***
The Changeling is an old-fashioned ghost story designed to send shivers up the spine and leave hairs standing on end. I can’t think of a better way to describe this mostly effective Canadian-made supernatural thriller from Peter Medak (The Ruling Class). From a technical standpoint, it’s outstanding. Medak sets the action in a big eerie Victorian mansion with a troubled history. The décor consists of antique furniture, old books lined on shelves and a big staircase. There’s also a hidden room, all dust and cobwebs, containing a child-sized wheelchair that hasn’t been touched in decades.
The Changeling has atmosphere to spare and a chilling story to back it up. If only it had a protagonist that didn’t appear to have it so together. Movies like this depend on a main character losing it mentally in the face of the unexplained. They’re not supposed to be as calm as George C. Scott’s (The Exorcist III) character seems to be. He plays John Russell, a classical composer who loses his wife and daughter in a terrible car accident. The wracked-with-grief pianist moves from New York City to Seattle for a fresh start. Claire Norman (Van Devere, The Hearse) from the local historical society rents him a big house that hasn’t been lived in for 12 years. It’s no wonder. It doesn’t just have creaks; it has loud thumping sounds that begin at the same time every day. The piano plays by itself. The faucets turn on by themselves. Glass shatters by itself. Then John finds that room. That’s when the real trouble starts.
It turns out the house has a history…. and a ghost. It’s trying to tell John something. He holds a séance with a few locals in which he learns the ghost is a sick little boy named Joseph who was murdered in the secret room by his father circa 1909. It’s somehow connected to a powerful Senator (Douglas, Being There) who would rather John not poke his nose into things that don’t concern him.
Scott is an incredible actor. The closest to a bad performance he’s ever given is Firestarter and that was a mere matter of miscasting. He’s good in The Changeling. He makes unexpected choices with his character. Most people would be totally freaked out by the supernatural goings-on he witnesses. He chooses to take the road less travelled by not falling to pieces. He’s perhaps too self-possessed in dealing with the spooky events. Maybe a little overacting wouldn’t be such a bad thing in this case.
The only other problem I have with The Changeling is that the story never really makes the connection between John’s personal tragedy and the tragedy that took place in the house. More astute viewers will put it together themselves, but it still would have been nice if the makers were a little more overt about it.
Problems aside, The Changeling is a pretty good horror film. It has a few legitimate chills and scares. Medak makes excellent use of sound. There’s some great camerawork too. I’m especially fond of a couple of shots involving an abandoned well where a body might be buried. This movie is an exercise in craftsmanship.
Working from an intelligent script by William Gray and Diana Maddox, Medak doesn’t resort to cheap tricks like showing people getting hacked to pieces. I have to say I don’t understand why The Changeling is rated R. There’s hardly any swearing, just one SOB and a couple of mild oaths (a damn and a hell). There’s no graphic violence. There’s absolutely no sex or nudity. Maybe it’s the scene where the little boy is drowned. In any event, it would probably get a PG-13 today.
While it falls short of being a horror classic, The Changeling delivers the goods where it counts most. It is a well-crafted haunted house movie. It’s chilling, but not disturbing. It’s scary without being OTT. It’s a ghost story with class.
