Rent The Innkeepers (2011)

A great escape from Teen Slasher Flicks - The Innkeepers review by DG

I really enjoyed this movie, or more to the point I was creeped out after watching it. The premise feels a bit like the Shining, A hotel is closing so guests are at a minimum, in fact there are only 4 in total. There are 2 staff played expertly by Sara Paxton (As Claire) and Pat Healy (Luke). They take it in turns to sit on the front desk of the hotel to welcome the threadbare guests that do arrive. The real joy of this movie is the not knowing, its all about what you don't see vs what you do that makes this film stand out from the pack. Sara Paxton is ace as she discovers more and more about the Hotel and is gradually drawn into its darker side. Her performance from happy go lucky to very scared should be acknowledged.

If you prefer your movies creepy rather than blood and guts then this could be for you............just don't watch it alone.

Spoilers follow ... - The Innkeepers review by NP

‘Going out of business,’ proclaims the notice on the door as Claire (Sara Paxton) begins her shift. Inside, the other employee of the Yankee Pedlar Inn is Luke (Pat Healy). To fill in their final days in the spacious building, they are determined to see if there is any truth in the rumour that the place is haunted and spend much of their time scanning the internet, as well as observing the security cameras looking for (and usually missing) any suspiciously haunting clues.

Claire is a plucky, funny, asthmatic girl. Needless to say, she’s a million miles away from, and far more likeable than, the painted models that often strut their way through horror films. Equally, Luke is arch, cranky and in his own way, equally likeable. He’s real, and not the slick, slack-jawed beefcake champion of blandness that barely fills a vest on the set of more gratuitous, less compelling chillers.

Events drag on far too slowly, I’m sure, for some viewers until we are reasonably convinced we’re not going to see anything frightening (we are wrong, of course). On one occasion, Claire reacts to something standing behind Luke that we never even see.

We meet two other guests: former actress and spiritually sensitive Leanne (Kelly McGuilliss), and the unnamed Old Man (George Riddle). While the fate of the latter is excellently handled and very shocking, the other glimpses of gore are actually fairly perfunctory, but what makes them effective is the build-up, and the apprehension we are fully acquainted with already. Director (and writer and co-producer) Ti Westhandles his tiny cast and low-budget with expert precision, especially when it comes to the characters.

When horrible things begin to happen to Claire, we are so attached to her at this point that we don’t just care about her, we’re appalled when what happens … happens! Recommended for fans of slow-burners.