It’s been a long time since I’ve really, truly marathoned a show on Netflix. While I can’t say I’ve actually property marathoned a show, I’ve come pretty close with The Haunting of Hill House. I have a busy life. Apart from already being married with a child, I also drive and live in a big-rig truck five days out of the week. I was watching this show while out on the road and in between sections in the hospital as my wife gave birth to my second child. It may not be a proper marathon, but if life wasn’t getting in the way, it would’ve been. So yes, it took me a week to finish, but for me, that’s really fast.
Pay close attention to the pacing in the show, it’s not one to miss. Each episode has hidden clues and Easter eggs that are referenced in later episodes. The writing truly was a spectacle, because the horror genre rarely focuses on more than a quick and cheap jump scare. While there are jump scares littered throughout the show, they are never cheap, but instead written in beautifully and are usually connected to an emotionally driven, relevant sequence.
Truthfully, I tried to find fault in the show. I ignored the scary elements and focused purely on cinematography. Turns out I didn’t need to try so hard, though. The actually terrifying elements of the show are found in the first half… for the most part. The second half focuses more heavily on the mystery and interconnectedness of the series as a whole. Ghosts aren’t as scary as they are interesting in the second half because it’s no longer about scaring the audience at that point, it’s about telling a solid story, and it does so brilliantly.
I was able to see some crazy good camera and editing usage and some truly, truly unforgettable emotionally-driven speeches in every episode. This show is more about the characters than anything else, and everyone feels like they were born to play the roles. If this was a movie, using my typical rating scale, I’d rate it 99% The only place that didn’t stand out to me and felt like typical horror was the score. Apart from the intro credits, none of the music blew me away, but literally everything else did. This is a near-perfect TV show.
If you haven’t checked it out, do so now. It’s on Netflix!
Dave Examines TV 