... tHe sKeLeToN kEy...The Skeleton Key will probably be marketed as a horror – an isolated house on the banks of a New Orleans swamp where doors slam of their own accord; nervous rumours of murderous black magic rituals; and a blonde protagonist who has to run about a lot. But this does the film a huge disservice. It is a superb supernatural thriller that unfurls unpredictably, with a tensely macabre tone, performances that are uniformly finely pitched, and a climax that will have you drooling popcorn.Kate Hudson, who has irksomely been referred to as a 'rising' star for the last five years, brings a surprisingly committed sensibility to her role as Caroline Ellis – a hospice worker determined to make enough money to attend nursing school, after failing to nurse her own father through his death. She takes a job as a live-in caretaker for the aging owners of an isolated plantation house – a man rendered nearly lifeless by a stroke (Ben - John Hurt in truly mesmerising form) and his sister (Violet - the excellent Gena Rowlands) on the recommendation of the siblings' lawyer. But when Violet gives Caroline the house's skeleton key, she begins to discover things that are best left locked away.
The scene that I will be analysing is the scene in which Kate Hudson is frantically in the attic, trying to hide herself away from the psychotic lady of the house. The scene uses low key lighting, this use of low key lighting creates a sense of enigma, and thus can refer to a feeling of being kept in the dark and not knowing what lies around the corner. The sound which is used is very specific and eerie, the typical scary movie conventions are followed for example the creaky floorboards and the trees banging against the glass windows.
The scene that I chose to analyse is very significant to the whole movie itself, as it is near the end when one doesnt know what to expect to happen. Kate Hudson frantically gets to the attic and on her way there knocks over a countless amount of mirrors, all smashing to pieces as they hit the floor. The sound of the mirrors smashing holds great emphasise on what is going on in the film itself and makes the audience jump. The PsYcHoLoGiCaL StAtE oF tHe cHaRaCtEr can be seen to be very jumpy and scared. Kate Hudson, now fumbling on the floor hears the lady of the house appraoching the attic and literally scrambles and crawls to save her own life.