Two siblings move into an abandoned seaside mansion only to find it’s haunted by an aggrieved spirit. 

THE UNINVITED (1944) feels important to the genre as it’s one of Hollywood’s first ghost stories. We’re headed back in time to 1944 when Horror continued to thrive following its Hollywood Golden Age of the 1930s. The films of this period involved Gothic themes like haunted settings and psychological terror decorated by inexplicable mid-atlantic accents. 

Spending holiday together, siblings Rick and Pamela stumble upon a beautiful abandoned mansion set on the crumbling cliffs of Cornwall. They wander the home (ok, illegal?) and immediately make plans for purchase. Finder keepers I guess. A hasty and surprisingly cheap sale is made by the owner, though his daughter Stella is dismayed by the news of the acquisition, as she feels an emotional connection to the building where her mother passed away years ago. 

Once the siblings have settled in, shadows shift on the walls, doors creak, and the sounds of an unseen weeping woman emanate through the hallways, confirming the stories they’d heard of ghosts. A mystery of identity unfolds as Stella unveils the truth behind her connection to the house and even finds time to romance Rick, of course.  

I found this incredibly charming, often funny. The eerie happenings and ghostly effects are sparse but gorgeous and helped set the tone for so many haunted house films to follow. If you like those classic black and white melodramas with lush orchestral soundtrack, then darling, you simply must check out THE UNINVITED.