Wood 1

Sarah Wood

Professor Volstad

UWRT-1104

28 February 2018

The Haunting

“Home is where the heart is,” said Eleanor, the main character in The Haunting. A major

theme throughout this movie was having a sense of belonging and knowing what your purpose

is. The Haunting is a thriller that was produced in 1999 directed by Jan de Bont. The novel, The

Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson stimulated Bont’s making of the film. The purpose of

the film is to create suspense of course but within the movie, there are much deeper meanings.

The film conveys the importance of exploring and understanding one's destiny.

Director, Jan de Bont used the subject, the house to personify the struggles one goes

through to find their own destiny. He uses the haunted house to draw Eleanor into the place she

is meant to be. The house is haunted by Hugh Crain and many of the many children he captured.

It is overwhelmingly large and has many rooms and statues inside (The Haunting. Dir. Jan de

Bont. Dreamworks, 1999). The house did not have many limitations, therefore, the director was

able to make the house very powerful and strong yet frightening. Bont’s attitude towards the

house is that everyone has a calling. He made the house so powerful it was able to bring Eleanor

to it.

The intended audience for the film is teenagers, young adults, and fans of the book. The

movie is rated PG-13, and younger people watch horror films most often. The author's tone

towards the audience is engaging in a passionate manner. It is evident Bont wants the audience to

understand the deeper meaning he portrayed. The haunted house brings the audience fear and
 Wood 2

adrenaline, therefore the audience enjoys the feeling of being on edge. An audience who has read

the book would understand the general idea or background of the film. An audience who has

never heard of any related works before the movie would only know the title, and the genre. The

audience would need to know the rating of the film, and what age is appropriate to watch or not

watch. The title The Haunting gives away the movie's genre. Someone who has read the book

would know the movie was inspired by it, therefore understanding the generalization of the

movie.

Bont uses ethos, pathos, and kairos to ensure the audience understands that everyone has

a calling and how important it is to fulfill it while also enjoying the film. The film does not use

logos. Eleanor is brought to the house for a “research study” after receiving a call from who she

thought was the doctor. The doctor behind the research told them it was a study on insomnia. His

real intentions were to get them to hill house to examine how they reacted to fear. In the end, she

discovers that he never called her. She ended up in the house because that is where she was

meant to be to set the captured children free (The Haunting. Dir. Jan de Bont. Dreamworks,

1999). The argument Bont created was inductive. His argument was based on reasoning and

observations rather than logic and facts. Bont argued that ones intended fate will become reality.

He portrayed this by Eleanor setting the children free, and not leaving hill house.

Jan de Bont uses an appeal to ethos in many ways. The many actors in the movie are

credible and trustworthy. The cast is well-known actors and has been starred in many other films.

The director himself is extremely credible. He has shot numerous genre films and blockbusters in

his career. The Haunting was released by Dreamworks which releases very popular movies. The

characters such as Dr. David Morrow was credible because he is a doctor and his clients at the

house considered him very trustworthy. They were being paid and assumed their sleeping issues
 Wood 3

would be resolved. Eleanor becomes credible when she found out her ancestors built the house

(The Haunting. Dir. Jan de Bont. Dreamworks, 1999). This clarified to the others and the

audience some of her reasoning for staying in the house and fulfilling her duty.

During the film, the audience can feel many different emotions. The thriller aspect of the

movie was effective in a way to create suspense and entertainment. The supernatural contributor

to the house gave the audience a sense of anxiousness and excitement. It also contributed to the

history of the house and the challenges Eleanor was faced with to complete her obligations.

Knowing that Hugh Crain trapped many children in the house caused the audience to feel

sympathetic for them. Once Eleanor sets them free and defeats Hugh Crain the audience will

begin to feel relief. The other characters will feel relieved but also sorrow because Eleanor

follows the children. Bont used pathos very effectively. He made the audience feel many things

and connect with the characters and become empathetic towards them, especially Eleanor (The

Haunting. Dir. Jan de Bont. Dreamworks, 1999).

The Haunting was released on July 23, 1999. The year it came out was around the time

when horror films began to become even more popular, especially for young people. It was also

released in the summertime when kids are out of school. Summer is when many big movies are

shown in theaters. The lingo and phrases that are used in the film are similar to the lingo that was

used during the late ’90s. The Haunting was released 40 years after the book The Haunting of

Hill House was published, so Bont was able to put his own spin on the film. The idea of purpose

and destiny relates well to young people because at that age it is difficult to discover one's

purpose.
 Wood 4

Bont uses various rhetorical strategies to leave the audience with a clear understanding of

how essential knowing one's purpose in life and to fulfill it. He takes his subject, hill house and

uses it to entertain of course and to portray why Eleanor was there and what she has to do.

Work Cited
 Wood 5

The Haunting. Directed by Jan de Bont, performances by Owen Wilson, Liam Neeson, and Lili

Taylor, Dreamworks, 1999.