Quartile rating: 6.5/10 · 1 rating
After a whirlwind romance with a wealthy widower, a naïve bride moves to his family estate but can't escape the haunting shadow of his late wife.
This 2020 Netflix remake of Hitchcock's classic adaptation of Daphne du Maurier's novel struggles to justify its existence. The plot follows the source material adequately but lacks the psychological tension that made the original so compelling. The acting is uneven — Lily James is serviceable but Armie Hammer is wooden and lacks the brooding menace the role demands, while Kristin Scott Thomas is the standout as Mrs. Danvers. Cinematography is polished and the Cornish locations are attractive, but it never achieves the expressionist shadows or visual unease that defined Hitchcock's version. Novelty is low given it treads well-worn ground and brings little fresh perspective or distinctive voice to the material. The ending softens and slightly alters the source, losing much of the gothic ambiguity in favor of a more crowd-pleasing resolution that undermines the story's unsettling core.