A Haunting in Salem 3D Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		3.5
Audio		3.5
Extras		1.0
Overall		2.5

A Haunting in Salem 3D Blu-ray Movie Review

A potentially decent movie is marred by inconsistencies.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman January 15, 2012

This place is freaky.

The Asylum -- the studio with Hollywood rip-offs like Almighty Thor, Battle of Los Angeles, and 200 MPH to its name -- has embraced yet another of Tinseltown's golden children, and that's 3D filmmaking. Hey, they already copy its biggest movies, so why not its biggest technology, too? Of course the movie isn't a grand spectacle like Avatar; it's instead a lowly Haunted House flick that lacks scares but that is, surprisingly enough, not an absolute chore to watch, and it shows flashes of competency amidst a myriad of problems that fortunately don't add up to any disastrous level. Believe it or not, for those unfamiliar with The Asylum and just picking up this movie for its 3D visuals, that's saying something. Despite some obvious flubs along the way, A Haunting in Salem isn't bottom-of-the-barrel rubbish; it instead tells a decent, if not mostly predictable, story that bookends nicely enough and fills in its middle ground with adequate characters and transparent, though sometimes overlong, plot advancements. The 3D visuals are pretty decent, too, making for what may very well be The Asylum's best overall effort to date.

Oh come on kids, it's only haunted!

There's a new sheriff in town. Salem, Massachusetts is now home to the Downs family: father Wayne (Bill Oberst Jr.), wife Carrie (Courtney Abbiati), daughter Alli (Jenna Stone) and son Kyle (Nicholas Harsin). Little do they know that the old Corwin house that they now call home has a history of killing off its law enforcement residents. Mayor Collins (Gerald Webb) and deputy Mike (Carey Van Dyke) fail to mention the home's bloody past, foregoing the tale of the last resident and sheriff who allegedly murdered his family and jumped from a top-floor window. The family tries to settle in, but finds doing so difficult. Nobody likes the house, least of all Alli, whose troubles are compounded when a mysterious stranger begins cryptically chatting with her on the computer. The family begins seeing things, falling ill, and changing their ways. All know there's something wrong with the house, though some are slow to admit as much. Can the family piece together the puzzle of the Corwin house, or will they simply become the latest victim of a centuries-old curse?

As far as the movie's bread-and-butter merits go, there's just not much to say, it's so effectively generic. The acting is a little stiff and forced, but then again so is the entire movie. Every frame exudes a hesitation, a sense of uncertainty, though not in a way that might suggest the pending arrival of the boogeyman from the shadows and effectively creating a tingling fear in its audience. No, it's a result of a script and a technical approach to the movie that both seem uncertain of what to do with the story. It's all very much repetitive, and the bulk of the middle stretch feels like the filmmakers desperately trying to drag the movie out to give it an acceptable runtime, when in reality the story as presented here probably would have worked better in about an hour rather than an hour-and-twenty. There are lengthy shots that add nothing to the plot, like a scene that features Wayne washing at the bathroom sink for far too long than is cinematically necessary. The pacing, then, suffers greatly, and add in the lack of real suspense and scares, and the movie would seem to have "disaster" written all over it. Somehow, though, that's just not the case. For all its struggles, A Haunting in Salem manages to paint an overall picture that's not atrociously bad. The characters are bland but likable enough, though not to any extent that has the viewer really caring what history and fate may have in store for them. The general premise, likewise, is generic but effective, and since that's becoming the new norm in Hollywood these days, it's hard to fault a middle ground picture too terribly much, especially considering that The Asylum has effectively matched moderately-budgeted big studio films perhaps not in spit and polish, but in a more general cinematic sense, and on a lower budget to boot.

Of course, there are still Asylum traits aplenty within the movie, traits that aren't a result of budget constraints but rather sheer laziness; would this be an Asylum movie otherwise? Alli's computer IM "new message" alert sounds like something out of a cheap 1980s movie or off an Atari game when bleeps and bloops were new and hip. It sounds downright goofy in 2012, and it's not like finding one of any available hundreds -- thousands, maybe -- of no-cost modern replacements would had been a challenge. Wayne and family drive a red Honda SUV with a Dodge interior. Equipment is often visible in reflections. It's the accumulation of little things that make the movie a lesser animal. A Haunting in Salem was never going to be the next great movie, anyway, but a little more creativity and attention to detail would have gone a long way in making it something a little more presentable and respectable. Still, the movie is somewhat charming in a silly sort of way, yet it's also frustrating because its shortcomings are so readily evident and easily fixable. Through it all, though, the movie manages to hold its audience's attention, anyway. The acting is fairly stiff and robotic, defined by a marriage between Wayne and Carrie that feels less than authentic, in large part because there's no chemistry, and to a lesser extent because he looks a good 20 years her senior. The kids are flat, and the supporting cast -- including Mrs. Winston, President of the Salem Historical society (get it, "Winston-Salem?" Hardy har har!) -- is next to invisible, though fundamentally effective as bodies filling roles. The real problem here is that the story's main premise is never explained -- or explained adequately -- as to why the town keeps plopping new sheriffs into the house when history says there's a 100% chance of them dying. Seems rather rude, especially given that this family has no previous connection to the area and who are at best but victims of circumstance, or better said, devices to help create an awfully generic, rushed, and not-very-well-conceived 3D Horror picture.

A Haunting in Salem 3D Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

A Haunting in Salem 3D's Blu-ray presentation is a good one, though it's not likely to wow any in the audience with more than handful of Blu-ray 3D titles under their belts. The image's basic elements, to begin, are typical Asylum. The general picture is steady but bland, glossy, and lifeless, the norm for lower-budgeted digital movies. Fine detail is good though not great; scenes featuring paved roadways reveal strong textures, fall time Massachusetts leaves are nicely defined even at a distance, and the wooden and tile odds and ends around the house appear steady and natural. Faces can look a little flat, but not absolutely bland and never smeary. Colors are steady, and the movie isn't nearly as dark as one might think. Many daytime scenes reveal good, steady hues, whether plain whites around the kitchen, wooden accents, or the pink paint in Alli's room. The image is relatively free of banding, and blocking and noise are of minimal concern. Blacks tend to be a little murky, but such is often the case with 3D presentations from larger studios.

The 3D elements are steady but somewhat stale. The opening sequence shows good separation between a few distinct layers, with the titles themselves seeming to slowly drift out of the screen. The image is mostly about natural depth, and the transfer creates a sense of space with little effort. The house isn't of the sprawling variety but rather somewhat boxy. Still, rooms take shape, distances are easily gauged, and the image always lets off a sense of natural volume. Objects, too, tend to take a real, perceptible shape, whether the rounded edge of a bathtub, a banister running down the staircase, or the boxy exteriors of the house. There are but a few shots where something seems to extend beyond the screen, the best example being a pot of boiling water shot at such an angle to produce such an illusion. Crosstalk is minimal and seen primarily over the opening titles. The Asylum might not make the best movies, but they've definitely put in a noble effort for this, their first 3D title. It's not the best, but it's better than many.

A Haunting in Salem 3D Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

A Haunting in Salem 3D features an effective yet generic DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack. It yields decent spacing across the front and a nice spread of nuanced and heavy ambience alike. Whether dripping water, slight rattles, an owl hooting off to the side, or more pronounced and "frightening" elements, the track handles all with good clarity and accurate imaging. Bass, is it's prone to do in some lesser tracks, is deep and loud but rattly at the bottom. Music is smooth and enjoys adequate clarity through the entire range, but plays with little surround support. Dialogue is steady and clear, its delivery constantly handled by the center channel. Most of these sorts of movies enjoy more complex soundtracks; this one's rather basic, but it works well enough for the quality of the film it accompanies.

A Haunting in Salem 3D Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

A Haunting in Salem 3D comes with two film-related extras.

• Making of Featurette (1080p, 5:57, 3D): Director Shane Van Dyke and others discuss shooting in 3D, the 3D equipment used in the shoot, and the gruel of the shoot.
• Gag Reel (1080p, 1:31, 3D).
• Trailers: Additional Asylum titles (in 3D).

A Haunting in Salem 3D Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

A Haunting in Salem 3D isn't awful by any stretch of the imagination, but it is rather flat (technically speaking, of course) and devoid of originality. The story is interesting but poorly constructed, the characters unbelievable, the acting bland, and the little odds and ends that really make a movie complete lacking. Still, it makes for a surprisingly decent watch in a mindless sort of way. The 3D visuals are never used to great effect, but they don't look bad, either. This is a little better than the norm for The Asylum, and one can at least say the studio is on the right track if this is any indication of things to come. The Asylum's Blu-ray 3D release of A Haunting in Salem features decent video and audio and a couple of throwaway supplements. Worth a look as a rental.