REVIEW: There's Some Spooky Stuff in Silent House, But It's Mostly Just Arthouse Wigwaggery

Silent House is not just a horror film but a Very Important Piece of Social Commentary, as youll see when you get to the movies third-act twist. In other words, its not asking you to watch a terrified womans face for some 90 minutes -- in sort-of real time, no less -- without an allegedly good reason. This is good-for-you, arthouse-style horror. Which doesnt mean its necessarily any good. The gimmick goes like this: A young woman named Sarah (Elizabeth Olsen) is shown rattling around her familys lake house in a series of long takes designed to give the effect of real time. We see her wandering by the water as if lost in a dream; coming back to the house to greet her father, John (Adam Trese), whos fixing up the joint with an eye toward selling it; being puzzled when a mysterious dark-haired beauty around her own age, Sophia (played by Julia Taylor Ross), shows up at the front door, reminding her of all the fun times the two had as kids -- Sarah cant seem to remember a thing. But she does tell Sophia, in an extremely obvious bit of horror-helper dialogue, The phone lines arent set up and our cells dont work out here -- information that will later, of course, prove useful for someone to know. Other stuff happens: For instance, Uncle Peter (Eric Sheffer Stevens), whos helping his brother and Sarah fix up the house, eyes her with somewhat inappropriate lasciviousness and says, Look at you -- I cant get over how grown-up you are. Then Uncle Peter takes off, and Sarah and her dad are left to wander the inky shadows of the old homestead, their faces illuminated only by the camping lanterns they carry around. Minutes later -- or is it hours? -- Sarah hears a noise upstairs. Dad goes up to investigate, and all seems well until theres an ominous thunk. Much of the rest of the picture is an extended study of Sarahs face, which is more often than not twisted into a mask of fear and dread. It takes forever for things to start happening in Silent House. And when they do, you wish they wouldnt. The picture is a remake of the Uruguayan film La Casa Muda, directed by Gustavo Hernndez, which made a mild splash at Cannes a few years back on the basis of the one-shot gimmick. Chris Kentis -- who also made the 2003 shark-sadism drama Open Water -- and Laura Lau have done the refashioning here, and whatever the movies flaws may be, there are stretches that are suitably suspenseful and atmospheric. Thats thanks in part to the pictures sound design: When we hear footsteps treading perilously close to Sarah, we can tell the wearer is shod in heavy boots with rubbery soles; the sound of a discarded bottle rolling across an uneven wood floor is hollow and mournful; now and then the house groans ever so slightly, as if in denial of the horrors its hiding within. But then theres the music, courtesy of Nathan Larson, which isnt really music, but more of a low, migrainey hum. And poor Elizabeth Olsen: Her face is luminous and compelling by itself -- she doesnt have to do much. But she has too many unbroken minutes to fill in Silent House: One second shes grimacing, the next shes practically biting her wrist to keep from screaming, the next shes back to grimacing again. Please! Theres only so much an actress can do to fill up these endless long takes. In the end, Silent House just comes off as a highly accomplished bit of arthouse wigwaggery -- and a reminder that judicious editing, and not languorous love from the camera, is the actors truest friend. Follow Stephanie Zacharek on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.