In 2013, Haunter, a Canadian supernatural horror directed by Vincenzo Nataliand starring Abigail Breslin and Stephen McHattie, went relatively unnoticed — quite undeservedly so. Partly, it didn't get much attention since, after its premiere at the SXSW film festival, it only got a limited release. The other reason might be that by 2013 the audience seemed to move on from ghosts altogether, as the supernatural genre was mostly preoccupied with demons and mythical entities (see: The Conjuring, Mama, Evil Dead, etc.).
The fact that the film starts off like any other film about a haunted house, didn't help things either. After the opening credits roll, we are introduced to a family (mom, dad, a teenage daughter and a younger son) who are cooped up in their home on a particularly misty day. Oh, also, something mysterious might be happening in the house. It does seem like a story we've seen many times before, but then, within the first ten minutes of screen time, thefirst twist unexpectedly happens. Apparently, all the family members are dead, and only teenage Lisa (played by Breslin) is aware that they are stuck in a postmortem Groundhog Day reenactment — the day they got murdered.
The First Twist Leaves Many Questions to Answer and Many Options for Chills
Sure, ever since The Sixth Sense and The Others, we've often seen this kind of "OMG, they've been dead this whole time" trope — but the big reveal always comes at the end in them. Haunter still has lots of great questions in store though. What actually happened to the family? Why are they stuck in this tedious loop? Why is Lisa the only one to realize they're dead? What's up with the silhouette of a man caught on an old video of their moving-in day? For a while, the film progresses as a kind of supernatural mystery, where the protagonist investigates her own murder. Gradually building on the mystery, Haunter really makes an effort to establish our connection with this family, and takes full advantage of the fact that its main character is a teenager.
A time loop is the most terrifying of traps, as these horror films reveal.
Lisa might be dead, but she still has to deal with a lot of typical teenage angst, which brings both emotion and a little bit of humor to the table. The girl not only grapples with the fact that she died just the day before her 16th birthday, she also has to deal with the annoying family dynamic: her mom is nagging about laundry, her dad is acting erratically, and her younger brother is busy hanging out with his imaginary friend (rarely a good sign in horror). They, of course, are all convinced she is the one acting strangely because of some teenage drama. Having Lisa wear her trademark Siouxsie and the Banshees t-shirt isn't only a good way to give the audience a hint about the decade the family died, but also a great way to establish her character as someone who is a bit rebellious and prone to stand her ground — which makes her a believable teen and a relatable protagonist.
Breaking Out of the Time Loop Isn't the Biggest Challenge for the Family in 'Haunter'
Even with all of those things happening, inevitably the story still reaches the point where it might seem like it doesn't really have high enough stakes. After all, as Lisa herself raises this valid point: they are already dead, how much worse can it really get? And this is exactly where Haunter takes yet another fun turn. First, it turns out, things can indeed get worse, even in the afterlife. Vincenzo Natali, who got famous thanks to his twisty, philosophical takes on the genre, such as Cube(1997) and Splice(2009), seizes the opportunity here to throw in some existential dread. When Stephen McHattie, who as usual excels at being hyper creepy, fully enters the picture, he effectively threatens Lisa with eternal loneliness, raising the emotional stakes tenfold.
Even more significantly though, a whole new subplot involving people who are very much alive, is introduced. The concept of non-linear time suddenly goes beyond just the time loop, as we realize that Lisa's family and all previous victims of the same killer exist at the same time as the family currently inhabiting this very house. And a tragedy is about to strike again. This development is not unlike the narrative in Steven Soderbergh's latest film Presence, where time also works in a complex, non-linear way. Haunter doesn't put the audience in the POV of a ghost, but it still manages to pull an unexpected stunt that's similar to the one in Soderbergh's movie — it gives the supernatural entity a real agency and a chance to be the true hero of the story.
Revisiting Haunter now, it's clear it is not only an inventive and fun twist on the familiar ghost story, it can also be considered a film that was a bit ahead of its time. It fits right in with contemporary horror films that tend to connect the eerie stuff with deep-rooted trauma, emotional baggage and complicated family dynamics. One of the most poignant points Natali's film makes is highlighting the way the vicious circle of domestic violence repeats itself. There is, of course, a paranormal reason behind the increasingly alarming behavior of the fathers in both families here, but the reactions and continual denial of their loved ones are actually entirely realistic. Also, Haunter might feature one of the most seemingly mundane versions of the afterlife, but it's also one of the scariest. Seriously, just imagine being stuck for eternity having to watch the same episode of Murder, She Wrote, over and over again.
Image via Wild Bunch
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