The Other Reviews

This genuinely creepy psychological horror film is set in a small Connecticut farm town circa 1935. Ten-year-old Niles (Chris Udvarnoky) and his twin brother, Holland (Martin Udvarnoky), spend their summer playing together around their home. Niles is well behaved, but mischievous Holland is constantly getting Niles into trouble. Eventually Holland's pranks turn lethal and people, including the boys' loathesome cousin and a nosy neighbor, start dying. Adapted by former actor Thomas Tryon from his own best-selling novel, THE OTHER is a return to the Val Lewton school of horror, where terror is mostly conveyed through subtle suggestion and an overall sense of unease and dread. And while the story pivots on a twist that casts everything seen up to that point — about an hour in — in a dramatically different light, it feels neither forced nor cheap. The surprise is rooted in character, and the film is just as haunting, albeit in a different way, on repeat viewing. Director Robert Mulligan (TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD) does an excellent job of evoking both the historical period and the terror, aided greatly by Robert Surtees' fine photography. The performances from the Udvarnoky twins are nuanced and memorable. Well worth seeing.