Innkeepers, The
- Directed by: Ti West
- Starring: Sara Paxton, Pat Healy, Alison Bartlett, Jake Schlueter, Kelly McGillis
- Genre: Horror
- Theater Release: 02/03/2012
- Video Release: 04/24/2012
Synopsis
A pair of self-styled ghost chasers hunt for spirits in a run-down New England inn in this subtle thriller from director Ti West. The Yankee Pedlar Inn is a hotel in Torrington, CT, that's been welcoming guests for over a hundred years. However, not many have been stopping by lately, and the owners have chosen to shut it down. In the Yankee Pedlar's last weeks of operation, the staff have been reduced to just two people, Claire (Sara Paxton) and Luke (Pat Healy). Neither one is especially interested in hotel management, but they're both students of the supernatural: They've come to the Yankee Pedlar because it has a reputation for being haunted and they want to see for themselves if ghosts walk the halls before it's too late. The two spend their time searching the empty rooms for evidence of paranormal activity, which Luke will post on his website (if he ever finishes it), but they don't find much until an eccentric woman (Kelly McGillis) who shares their fascination with ghosts checks in. Together, they begin to discover the truth about the Yankee Pedlar's strange legacy. THE INNKEEPERS received its world premiere at the 2011 South by Southwest Film Festival.
A pair of self-styled ghost chasers hunt for spirits in a run-down New England inn in this subtle thriller from director Ti West. The Yankee Pedlar Inn is a hotel in Torrington, CT, that's been welcoming guests for over a hundred years. However, not many have been stopping by lately, and the owners have chosen to shut it down. In the Yankee Pedlar's last weeks of operation, the staff have been reduced to just two people, Claire (Sara Paxton) and Luke (Pat Healy). Neither one is especially interested in hotel management, but they're both students of the supernatural: They've come to the Yankee Pedlar because it has a reputation for being haunted and they want to see for themselves if ghosts walk the halls before it's too late. The two spend their time searching the empty rooms for evidence of paranormal activity, which Luke will post on his website (if he ever finishes it), but they don't find much until an eccentric woman (Kelly McGillis) who shares their fascination with ghosts checks in. Together, they begin to discover the truth about the Yankee Pedlar's strange legacy. THE INNKEEPERS received its world premiere at the 2011 South by Southwest Film Festival.
Reviews
"The spare cast are effective game pieces, with Paxton an especially winning heroine..." (Los Angeles Times)
3 stars out of 4 -- "Ti West knows how to build suspense with quiet and timing....Ghost movies like this, depending on imagination and craft, are much more entertaining than movies that scare you by throwing a cat at the camera." (Chicago Sun-Times)
"THE INNKEEPERS suggests that West’s greatest strengths may lie with the way he handles the meeting between normalcy and terror..." -- Grade: B+ (A.V. Club)
"It's said that slow and steady wins the race, and the film's careful build to its resolution is indeed victorious. So too are the perfectly attuned performances by Healy and Paxton..." (Film Comment)
"Like the HOUSE OF THE DEVIL, this is built around its central performance....The film offers nuanced visual and aural chills..." (Sight and Sound)
5 stars out of 5 -- "THE INNKEEPERS treads a carefully ambiguous path which resonates long after the creepy final coda. It's one of the scariest, and best, horror films of recent years." (Total Film)
"The spare cast are effective game pieces, with Paxton an especially winning heroine..." (Los Angeles Times)
3 stars out of 4 -- "Ti West knows how to build suspense with quiet and timing....Ghost movies like this, depending on imagination and craft, are much more entertaining than movies that scare you by throwing a cat at the camera." (Chicago Sun-Times)
"THE INNKEEPERS suggests that West’s greatest strengths may lie with the way he handles the meeting between normalcy and terror..." -- Grade: B+ (A.V. Club)
"It's said that slow and steady wins the race, and the film's careful build to its resolution is indeed victorious. So too are the perfectly attuned performances by Healy and Paxton..." (Film Comment)
"Like the HOUSE OF THE DEVIL, this is built around its central performance....The film offers nuanced visual and aural chills..." (Sight and Sound)
5 stars out of 5 -- "THE INNKEEPERS treads a carefully ambiguous path which resonates long after the creepy final coda. It's one of the scariest, and best, horror films of recent years." (Total Film)
