Stephen King drew from his classic stories to make this made-for-TV film. It begins with parapsychology teacher, Joyce Reardon (Nancy Travis), giving a lecture to her students about Rose Red, a reputedly haunted mansion in Seattle. Just as she concludes this lecture, a student reporter challenges her about using university funds and equipment for her upcoming excursion, while her boss and arch nemesis, Professor Miller, watches from a room above the lecture hall.

The two professors get into a heated exchange before Steven Rimbauer, the last heir to the Rimbauer estate (Rose Red) and her lover, arrives. Knowing that Professor Miller is about to destroy her career, Reardon takes a gamble and continues with her project because she wants to prove to the faculty that the paranormal does exist. From the very beginning it is quite clear that she is obsessed with Rose Red, which she believes is the mother lode of haunted houses.

She hires six psychics to accompany her to this place to revive it from its “dead cell” state. One of them is autistic 15 year-old Annie Wheaton (Kimberly Brown), who is a powerhouse of telekinetic ability. Joyce is just as obsessed with the girl as she is with the house because she feels that Annie is the key to unlocking her proof and catapulting her into stardom. The professor is so blinded by her ambitions that she doesn’t see the danger until it is too late. What was supposed to be a weekend of catching spirits and voices on tape, turns out to be a fight for survival.

Rose Red is a very good movie on several levels, although it starts out slow. We’re forced to sit there and wait for Joyce Reardon to finish her lectures about the house and its owners. While interesting, it bordered on too much. I’d say that almost half of the first DVD was taken up by this.

Once the movie got going, I found myself riveted. The characters had a variety of psychic powers and quirks, plus their own motivations for embarking on this mission. It was their quirks that determined how they dealt with the environment they found themselves trapped in and if they survived.

The other qualm was the quality of the special effects, especially where the ghosts were concerned. In all my research about ghosts, I’ve never heard of an account where they appear as corpses. Solid or translucent versions of their former selves, yes, but not walking corpses. Because this was a made-for-TV movie, there isn’t a lot of gore, which is good because the movie had plenty of creepy elements, such as the way the house continued to change its geography.

While Rose Red is not all that original, it is definitely worth watching.

The Keddie Resort, founded in 1910, was a thriving vacation town 140 miles north of Sacramento, California. People drove hundreds of miles to stay in one of the 33 rustic cabins, hike the pristine wilderness, and dine on wild game and fine wine. All this changed on April 11, 1981, when Glenna Sharp, two of her children, and a teenage friend were found brutally murdered inside Cabin 28. When law enforcement failed to catch the killers, Keddie resort turned into a ghost town within a year after the slayings.

Dubbed “The Murder House,” Cabin 28 was a grim reminder of that awful slaying. It was a place of such evil that seasoned detectives did not like to step inside during their investigations. The curious and the homeless are reported to have fled the house in terror after seeing floating figures and objects materialize from out of nowhere.

Local residents are skeptical of the hauntings and are hopeful of rebuilding the once thriving community. If anything, they are resentful of the unwanted intrusions of ghost seekers.

“That house has been such a negative point for so long that I intend to tear it down and put a park there,” long time owner, Gary Mollath said. “Then I’m going to open this place back up and cater to groups — with people traveling closer to home now, I think the timing will be just right. I want people to come and say, ‘Wow!’ when we start up again. Not be scared.”

Cabin 28 was razed on August 26, 2006. Let’s just hope that whatever lurked inside has vanished, along with the rubble.

I’ll start off by stating what I liked about this movie first. I liked the usage of the black and white photography of the house as well as the use of black and white film for the first scene, which involves the brutal deaths of the family who lived there prior to the Sullivans. The fact that they kept the killer(s) out of the camera’s sight gave it a strong impact.

From there, the movie spiraled into mediocrity. Like I said in my prior post, there wasn’t any originality to the storyline or with the special effects. I knew this before I walked into the theater, so I wasn’t disappointed. The thing that frustrated me the most was the acting.

Kristen Stewart (Jess) bit her lips so often that it was a wonder they didn’t bleed. Her behavior also bothered me. Let’s say that a pack of ghosts/monsters tried to pull you down into the cellar. Would you bother calling 9-1-1, or would you pick your little brother up and leave as fast as you can? Would you be carting him around the dark house afterwards, waiting for the next inevitable attack? That’s Hollywood, though.

The parents were such dweebs that I wished they had been killed off halfway through the movie. By the end, they managed to quell their hysterical self-centeredness for the sake of their children.

Overall, The Messengers was a decent B-movie. My suggestion is to wait until the dollar-theaters start playing it.

I’ve always been a sucker for ghost stories, especially movies with an intriguing plot. Below is the round-up of the movies that will be coming out this year. There might be more, but this is what I’ve seen to date.

February 2: The Messengers

A teenage girl and her toddler brother experience frightening paranormal phenomenon after their family moves into an old farmhouse out in the country. Based on the synopsis and the trailer, this movie looks pretty typical of Hollywood. Normally, I’d pass on it, but one of my girlfriends wants to see it.

March 23: Dead Silence

Jamie explores the creepy town of Ravens Fair after the brutal murder of his wife, and encounters the legend of Mary Shaw, a famous murdered ventriloquist whose presence is still felt. The lead suspect in his wife’s murder, Jamie is forced to dig deep into the town’s bloody past and uncovers the truth behind a curse that ended Lisa’s life and threatens to take his as well. While the special effects are good, the gore factor doesn’t appeal to me. Fans of Saw might enjoy this. See the trailer here.

July 13: Stephen King’s “1408″

After losing his daughter, a writer who debunks paranormal occurences (John Cusack) checks into The Dolphin Hotel’s most notorious room to experience the ghosts first-hand. I don’t know if this movie will compare with King’s original version of The Shining, but it looks like it has plenty of creepy weirdness. I’ll definitely go to see that one! Watch the trailer.