The main body of this film began in Red River, Tennessee in 1918. After a land dispute with a local woman, whom many feared to be a witch, John Bell and his family began experiencing terrifying visitations from an unknown entity. This entity first appeared as a menacing wolf, who prowled the Bells’ property. Then it began to attack John’s teenage daughter, Betsy, with a savage vengeance.

An American Haunting would have been a great story had it not been for the entity/poltergeist/ghost. The problem was, I wasn’t sure which it was supposed to be. Poltergeists are known to center on teenage girls who have experienced some kind of trauma. This one knocked physically attacked people and objects, recited Bible verse, showed its victims their past and futures, etc. The entity was too much of a mixed bag.

What really made this film a third-rate feature was the present-day “bookends” the director decided to tack on. The movie began with the girl crashing through the snow, obviously running from something terrifying. Her ordeal turns out to be a nightmare, similar to the ones Betsy experienced. The second one came at the end of what I call the real movie. While it mirrored Betsy’s painful secret, it offered nothing else. These scenes didn’t belong and should have been cut.

My pans aside, I enjoyed the acting very much. Sissy Spacek and Donald Sutherland gave a splendid performance, as did the rest of the cast. I loved the cinematography, especially when the entity was making its rounds. While I give this movie a very lukewarm recommendation, I am curious to read Brent Monahan’s book on the subject.