The Others

Now it's Nicole Kidman's turn to shine. While the overly-hyped, ambitious acid trip called "Moulin Rouge" was a beauty to behold, it was just a little too chaotic to appreciate the power of Kidman's rather stellar performance. Now, out of nowhere, comes "The Others," a creepy, moody, and intense haunted house thriller that features a bravura performance from Kidman--maybe her best ever--and a surprise ending that comes close to rivaling that of 1999's "The Sixth Sense."

While waiting for her husband to return home from World War II, Grace (Nicole Kidman) tends to her big, spooky Victorian house while taking care of her kids (Alakina Mann and James Bentley), who suffer from a rare disease that keeps them from being exposed to sunlight. The house is too big for one person to handle, so Grace hires three unusual housekeepers (Fionnula Flanagan, Eric Sykes, and Elaine Cassidy) who bring more to their jobs than meets the eye. Soon after their arrival, Grace becomes unhinged after hearing strange noises in the house, and upon closer investigation, she discovers a deep, dark secret that will haunt her--and the rest of her family--forever.

Comparisons are bound to be made between "The Others" (which was co-executive produced by Cruise) and "The Sixth Sense," and for good reason. Unlike the rest of the summer blockbusters, both movies progress at a mesmerizing and intense pace, and you can't help but move to the edge of your seat with each passing scene. Just when they finally grab you and have your complete attention, you're thrown back into your seat by genuine scares that come out of nowhere.

Both movies also feature surprise endings, but where the clues leading up to the ending of "The Sixth Sense" were very subtle and only revealed themselves after repeated viewings, the clues to the ending of "The Others" are much more obvious. Still, that doesn't stop writer-director Alejandro Amenabar from making the film just as effective, and he uses lots of fog, flickering candles, and a gothic-style setting to set the mood in a completely haunting and chilling way.

For a film that's shot with such a dark atmosphere, Nicole Kidman puts in a ghostly performance that shines with angelic beauty against the backdrop of the eternal twilight of the British countryside. Her relationship with her kids brings to mind the classic book "Flowers in the Attic," but her demeanor as the over-protective mother is as sensitive as it is obsessive. Fionnula Flanagan is just as impressive as the head housekeeper who possesses a lot more than just a good resume, and Alakina Mann is also effective as the eldest daughter who's convinced that they are not alone in the house (for what it's worth, she resembles a young Drew Barrymore).

Without a doubt, "The Others" has to be the scariest movie to come along since "The Sixth Sense," and it just may be the best haunted house flick since 1980's "The Shining." What's unusual is that the film is being unspooled during the dog days of summer--instead of during Halloween where it would have been just perfect--but that's hardly a major complaint. The fact is, in addition to being an "other" worldly moviegoing experience, "The Others" is the perfect cure for the disease that's known as the mindless Hollywood blockbuster.