Quartile rating: 8/10 · 1 rating
Grace is a woman who lives in an old house kept dark because her two children, Anne and Nicholas, have a rare sensitivity to light. When the family begins to suspect the house is haunted, Grace fights to protect her children at any cost in the face of strange events and disturbing visions.
The Others is a masterclass in atmospheric horror. The plot is tightly constructed with a genuinely shocking twist ending that recontextualizes everything before it, earning top marks. Nicole Kidman delivers a commanding, nuanced performance anchoring the entire film, with strong support from the child actors and the eerie servants. Cinematography is exceptional — Jaume Balagueró's collaboration with DoP Javier Aguirresarobe produces oppressive darkness, candle-lit dread, and meticulously controlled shadows that are among the best in the genre. The ending is one of horror's great revelations, emotionally resonant and thematically satisfying. Novelty scores slightly lower because while the execution is superb and the atmosphere distinctive, the haunted-house-with-a-twist framework draws on recognizable genre traditions and echoes The Sixth Sense's recent cultural moment, making it feel less wholly singular in conception even if supremely well-crafted.