Ghost Stories (2017) Reviews

• Creepy, very British Horror film.

  jonrosser812018-03-30

  This portmanteau film is made up of 3 scary ghost stories, all investigated by a man of science who is convinced the paranormal can be explained away with mundane explanations. A mysterious package leads him to investigate these 3 spooky tales. Great acting, well shot and directed, with a very British sense of humour sprinkled throughout. Do not read too much about this movie, just go and experience it, I think you will find it scary, interesting and most of all worth your time.

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• Mind games.

  BiiivAL2018-06-07

  Purely English cinema, atmospheric, in the best traditions of horror stories, beautiful, local landscapes are fascinating, in places flavored with humor and though not innovative, but damn interesting. It is impossible not to mention the actors, not to carp, Martin Freeman liked the most. The plot gravitates toward anthologies, but stories are not torn from the context of the narrative and are weaved into it, the final all unites. Cinemas do not often bring high-quality mysticism, so this film is an excuse to go to the movies for fans of the genre, do not wait for revelations, but time is definitely not wasted.

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• Very well made - but ultimately disappointing

  Simon19702018-04-06

  It's difficult to review Ghost Stories without giving spoilers away, so I'll be very careful in what I say. If you're after some good jump scares and some nervous laughs, then it executes those beautifully. Also, Alex Lawther should be praised for a performance that knocks it out of the park. It's a good cast, but he outshines them all. However, I do have issues with the story itself. Initially the plotting teases a new post-modern take on portmanteau horror, with the individual cases not resolving in the usual way, but building to something more climatic. But the story constructs its final act by falling back on a trope that we have all seen before and this left me disappointed when the credits rolled. From Jeremy Dyson and Andy Nyman you might expect something else. Something different. Something new. It's very well-made, but it's not different or new.

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• Ghost Stories uses its anthology structure to create chilling thrills.

  TheMovieDiorama2018-04-09

  British horrors are hit and miss with me, some are excessively uneasy to watch ('Eden Lake') whilst others are suitably atmospheric ('The Descent'). So when I saw the trailer to Ghost Stories, I immediately tempered expectations but what I saw increasingly intrigued me. The end result...was not what I predicted. A professor who takes pride at debunking psychic frauds, is given a task by his role model. He must investigate three unexplainable cases that challenge the existence of supernatural entities. An intriguing premise that will appeal to many, its execution however may not. Structuring its narrative through three short stories, each with a paranormal theme, whilst intertwining the cases into a coherent investigation. Combining real life conditions, such as stress, depression and loneliness, with a ghostly undertone certainly translates "the brain sees what it wants you to see" theme very well. The three cases themselves were convincingly atmospheric as they injected much needed chills and thrills to this horror flick. The main story itself, although basic, was ambiguously surreal and will leave you guessing right up to the final reveal. The acting was splendid from the whole cast, particularly Whitehouse and Lawther, hosting an array of British accents. Was it scary? No. Every single scare was accompanied with a piercing loud noise to ensure that you jump. That's not frightening, that's damn irritating! The makeup effects of the poltergeists were lacklustre. The second case should've been much scarier, but instead was rather hilarious. "Staaay!"...yeah, I wished you did. Could've enhanced the horror some more. Then we get to the ending, which is possibly one of the surrealist safest endings I've ever seen. The breadcrumbs throughout the film were intelligently positioned, but I feel it followed the same premise as an all too famous 1995 film (I won't say the title, it'll spoil it). The film is intelligently creepy, it's just not scary and it's conclusion didn't deliver any impact for me.

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• Ghost Stories: Such a shame!

  Platypuschow2019-01-04

  Ghost Stories is kinda of a horror anthology, but not really. It's a British horror anyway starring Martin Freeman and oddly Paul Whitehouse. It tells the story of a skeptic, a professional debunker and I think they're always fantastic protagonists because I can entirely relate to their plight and mission. He's tasked with investigating three supernatural incidents and off he goes to find the truth. Truth be told I was really enjoying it, it was so well handled. Genuinely tense, succeeds in being scary without relying on jump scares and the cast are fantastic. I was gripped, I was enthralled, I was hooked. Martin Freeman is on form and Paul Whitehouse in such a role though weird actually showed he may be a more credible actor than originally believed. He broke free of the comedy characters he's known for a did a great job. So what went wrong? Sadly for me it's one of those films killed by the ending, it just didn't work for me. I get it, I fully understand everything they were going for but personally that flat lined the entire film. Such potential, so well done, but that ending just bundled the thing into a coffin and sent it to a premature grave. Such a shame. The Good: The majority is fantastic on every front Lot of potential The Bad: Movie killing ending Things I Learnt From This Movie: Phone signal is something that you just swipe out of the air 02 product placement? Worst ever Professors are known for pulling onions out of their bottoms

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