THE HAUNTING OF MOLLY HARTLEY (Mickey Liddell). 85 minutes. Opens Friday (October 31). Rating: N
The Haunting Of Molly Hartley is a derivative story spoiled by a dull script, repetitive action, a severe shortage of legitimate shocks and a hopelessly feeble climax.
Producer turned first-time director Mickey Liddell tries to cover up by pulling pointless jump scares every chance he gets and cramming far too much creepy music into his soundtrack. He only breeds boredom.
Molly Hartley (Haley Bennett) is haunted by visions of her mother trying to save her from some unspecified evil by killing her. A pre-credit sequence lets us know that this has happened before, but nobody in the story knows that, so Molly just thinks she’s going nuts. She’s in a new prep school, surrounded by the usual teen suspects – good girl, bad girl, rich boy and bitch – plus caring dad and school counsellor.
Those one-word descriptions fit both characters and acting. No one, including Bennett, has any depth or am biguity, or brings much energy to their roles. The one exception is Shanna Collins, who lends warmth and creepiness to her born-again Christian good girl.