Perkins originally intended for the story to be about the daughter of a male horror novelist, but he said that "one day, it just changed". Casting became easier once the film was financed; Perkins cited Wilson's talent and excitement for the project as two of the reasons she was chosen to play Lily. It had been reported that Debbie Harry was initially attached to play Iris Blum, though the role ultimately went to Paula Prentiss. However, Perkins has stated that the role was always thought for Prentiss, who worked with his father, Anthony Perkins, in Catch-22 (1970) and remained friends since, as well as her husband Richard Benjamin. Harry was indeed cast first, but dropped out a few weeks before filming began. Principal photography took place in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
The film stars Ruth Wilson, Paula Prentiss, Bob Balaban, and Lucy Boynton. The cast are all uniformly excellent, but they're stuck in a film that doesn't seem to know what to do with them, at times.
Slow-building and atmospheric, I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House resists girls-in-peril clichés in a supernatural thriller that serves as a strong sophomore effort for writer-director Oz Perkins. It is one of the most original, and strongly female-led horror film of the year thus far. It's Hitchcockian in style, however, the thrills are doused in dread to create a surprisingly effective horror movie. This methodical possession riff further establishes Perkins as one of the few horror filmmakers whose every work will have my attention, as the film is a beautiful way to get the jitters. Deserves to be studied in terms of its visuals and learned from by those who write and want to learn how to tell a story with minimal, haunting dialogue. But beyond its compositional breadth, what Perkins conveys in the film lends itself a more feminine persuasion, one that addresses a set of impossible social responsibilities exclusive to women. The film is a cold descent into madness in then hands of a director that manages to capture the very essence of evil in uncommon places. The film is a haunting tale that breaths new life into the idea of possession and the loss of innocence. By the time the credits rolled I felt stunned and awestruck. It will stick with you for days (or even weeks) after you see it. I can't get the damn thing out of my head. The film takes its time slowly setting its pieces into place, and some expecting a more full-throttled horror experience might get a little restless waiting for the jolts to come. The film layers on the dread until it's almost physically challenging to keep watching as shadows grow ever more oppressive and the school ever less welcoming. Something wicked this way comes, indeed.
Slow-building and atmospheric, I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House resists girls-in-peril clichés in a supernatural thriller that serves as a strong sophomore effort for writer-director Oz Perkins. It is one of the most original, and strongly female-led horror film of the year thus far. It's Hitchcockian in style, however, the thrills are doused in dread to create a surprisingly effective horror movie. This methodical possession riff further establishes Perkins as one of the few horror filmmakers whose every work will have my attention, as the film is a beautiful way to get the jitters. Deserves to be studied in terms of its visuals and learned from by those who write and want to learn how to tell a story with minimal, haunting dialogue. But beyond its compositional breadth, what Perkins conveys in the film lends itself a more feminine persuasion, one that addresses a set of impossible social responsibilities exclusive to women. The film is a cold descent into madness in then hands of a director that manages to capture the very essence of evil in uncommon places. The film is a haunting tale that breaths new life into the idea of possession and the loss of innocence. By the time the credits rolled I felt stunned and awestruck. It will stick with you for days (or even weeks) after you see it. I can't get the damn thing out of my head. The film takes its time slowly setting its pieces into place, and some expecting a more full-throttled horror experience might get a little restless waiting for the jolts to come. The film layers on the dread until it's almost physically challenging to keep watching as shadows grow ever more oppressive and the school ever less welcoming. Something wicked this way comes, indeed.
Simon says I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House receives:
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