What Lies Beneath (2000)

WHAT LIES BENEATH
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One year after a near-fatal car accident, Claire Spencer (Michelle Pfeiffer) must face the trauma of empty nest syndrome as her daughter goes off to college. But Claire's nest is the newly renovated lakeside home of her deceased father-in-law, a spectacular house that she shares with husband Norman (Harrison Ford). Their marriage appears to be as solid as their neighbors across the way is troubled until Claire comes to believe they're being haunted by the ghost of the neighbor's wife in "What Lies Beneath."

LAURA:

What lies beneath this technically superior production are ripoffs of many, far better, horror films ("Rear Window," "Vertigo," "Psycho," "Stir of Echoes," and "Ghost" to name a few). It's too bad that screenwriter Clark Gregg and producer/director Robert Zemeckis ("Forrest Gump") didn't know when to quit while they were ahead because their film features some genuinely creepy thrills and a fine performance by Michelle Pfeiffer before it implodes under the weight of genre cliches, a truly awful and stupid ending and a wooden performance from the miscast Harrison Ford.

The film begins just like "Stir of Echoes" - in the tub. Claire has a vision that displays a watery death. When she spies their neighbor Warren Feur (James Remar) carrying a body-shaped bundle out to his car one rainy night (this film is soggier than "The Perfect Storm"), Claire is convinced he's killed his wife Mary (Miranda Otto, "The Thin Red Line") with whom he constantly fought (we know this couple is bad news because their house looks as shabby as the Spencers' looks spiffy). Claire's front door keeps opening mysteriously, a picture keeps falling to the floor and the bathtub fills with steamy water in which the reflection of a dead blonde woman can be seen. Claire even attempts a bathroom seance with a Ouija board and her best friend Jody (Diana Scarwid, "Mommie Dearest") before Norman insists she see a shrink (Joe Morton, "The Astronaut's Wife").

Up until this point, the film is edgy and suspenseful even if the filmmakers resort to cheap jolts too often. But at the 70 minute mark of this 130 minute film, the Macguffin is revealed for what it is and 'the truth,' which has been readily apparent all along, sidetracks the film into "Sleeping With the Enemy" territory. Zemeckis and company even manage to somewhat turn the impending disaster around with a really good bathtub climax only to derail themselves once again with an unnecessary, overextended groaner of an additional ending.

Michelle Pfeiffer gives her all as Claire and helps maintain interest in the film even as it begins its downward spiral. Also good is Diana Scarwid as Claire's goofy, psychic-friendly chum and Micole Mercurio as the dead girl's mother. Joe Morton is wasted in the superfluous role of Dr. Drayton (the psychiatrist scenes should have been cut from the film). Harrison Ford has simply never been as bad in a film as he is here, giving absolutely no depth to Norman Spencer.

Technically, the film is a jewel with superlative cinematography by Don Burgess ("Forrest Gump") and sharp sound work by William B. Kaplan, who makes ambient noise spooky. Production design by Rick Carter and Jim Teegarden may be a little obvious, but it's effective and the team even manage to insert a little joke late in the film with the name of an inn. Visual Effects by Rob Legato ("Titanic") are top notch.

"What Lies Beneath" is all the more disappointing for its early promise.

C

ROBIN:

Robert Zemeckis charmed the viewing public with "Who Shot Roger Rabbit" and "Forest Gump," showing a flair for both the funny stuff and the sentimental. Now, he departs from his usual lighter fare and delves into a supernatural murder mystery starring Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer in "What Lies Beneath."

Zemeckis, who also co-produced the film, drives his big star vehicle in what turns out to be a cliched effort that lacks originality. It's a cross between "Ghost Story" and "Stir of Echoes" as the story begins with Claire Spencer (Pfeiffer) preparing to see her only daughter (from a previous marriage) off to college. Their tearful separation is kindly watched by Claire's second husband, a respected genetics professor, Norman (Ford), who has taken a prestigious research post in Vermont.

The couple returns to their newly renovated house, the home that Norman grew up in with his brilliant geneticist father. Norman, even now, lives in the shadows of his father's great accomplishments, even as he himself is on the verge of a scientific breakthrough. His work forces him to leave his wife alone in their beautiful, but isolated home. Claire putters in her garden and suffers from empty nest syndrome. Things begin to happen that she can't explain - the front door keeps opening by itself, even when firmly latched; a photo of her with Norman as he accepts an award mysteriously breaks; the bathtub fills up on its own; and, the stereo turns itself on. When she catches fleeting glimpses of a dead girl, she rushes to her husband for help.

Norman believes that his wife needs psychiatric help and ships her off to a shrink, Dr. Drayton (Joe Morton), but the visitations increase and are more powerful. Claire comes to realize, with the help of her best friend Jody (Diane Scarwid), that the ghost is seeking her help. Using a book on witchcraft that Jody gave her, Claire conjures up the spirit of the girl, becoming possessed by the spirit. She learns that the girl died in her home and the story turns into a ghostly murder mystery. I won't say any more about the plot so as not to give anything away. But, I will talk about the pros and cons.

On the pro side are Michelle Pfeiffer's perf and the terrific tech work behind the camera. Pfeiffer is the central character and the focus of the story despite Harrison's name being billed first. (As a matter of fact, his is really a supporting role, but I'll get to that later.) Claire is a sensitive and talented lady who opens herself to the tortured spirit in her home. Pfeiffer is called upon to not just be Claire, but also takes on a completely different character when she is possessed. The actress is as beautiful as ever and she shows some fine acting chops to boot.

The behind-the-scenes artistry is populated by a bevy of Academy Award nominees and winners. The film's beautiful, haunting images are captured nicely by lenser Don Burgess, a longtime Zemeckis collaborator. The lush production design, by Rick Carter, is simple in locale but quite stunning visually. The Spencer house, itself, takes on a character as the story progresses. Special F/X work, led by Rob Legato ("Titanic"), when used (though not enough, in my opinion) are spooky and startling. Less is more when it comes to the ghostly effects and subtly rules here.

Now, let's get to the cons. A mediocre story that virtually telegraphs every plot twist well before they happen is the biggest problem. Cheap shot scary bits that consume the story's first hour are frequent and totally manipulative: the dog jumps out of nowhere unexpectedly; a startling eye-looking-back-at-you shot; someone behind the door ( a harmless someone); and, there are many more. I will say on other thing about the plot. As the story nears its never-ending ending, it twists away from the supernatural murder mystery and turns into a monster movie a la "Friday the 13th." This is not a good thing as the mystery dissolves and the unstoppable monster bit kicks in. There is an obvious end point that the makers should have used to terminate the film, but they ignore the sensible and go for the scary. They could have had a decent ghost movie/murder mystery, but they blew it.

Another problem, mainly due to the writing, is there are no other real characters in the film besides Pfeiffer. Harrison Ford, playing against his usual stalwart hero type, is wooden as husband/villain and lacks any of his usual charisma. Scarwid's Jody is little more than a plot device to intro Claire to the supernatural. She apparently has no problem trekking out to the isolated Spencer home for visits that are, literally, five minutes long. James Remar and Miranda Otto, as the mysterious, troubled next door neighbors, the Feurs, are little more than a McGuffin to distract you for a while. Joe Morton is given little to do in his couple of emotionless scenes. Supporting cast is sparse in numbers and development.

"What Lies Beneath" is like a poor suit made with good material. It looks nice but doesn't wear too well. Besides the unintentional send up to Jason movies, Hitchcock's "Psycho" gets a major nod, too. The problems are: there just aren't enough scary moments, way too many cheap shots and a hack script. You will find Pfeiffer's a compelling performance. Because of that and the top techs, I give it a C.

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laura@reelingreviews.com
robin@reelingreviews.com