The Haunting: A Comparison Study of the Modern and Classic Drama

Many of the silver screen classics timeless pieces used as the model from which modern films are often compared. Due to changing tastes in public opinion, however, I believe that this is an unfair comparison. In fact, I should go so far as to say that modern and classic drama films are two entirely different sub-categories of the drama genre. Let us begin our study by comparing two films of this genre, one a classic and the other modern.

For our classic example, we have the 1963 production of "The Haunting" which starred Julie Harris and Richard Johnson. The first and most obvious observation is in regard to the acting style. As with many of the older time-honored productions, they were very theatrical. Most dramatic scenes were very melodramatic. That is to say that the reactions and conversational speaking was not very natural. It would feature exaggerated speaking with the common "swoon" type physical reactions. The "swoon" is still used today in satirical reproductions of those silver screen classics.

This is however not the case with the 1999 remake of "The Haunting", starring Liam Neeson and Lily Taylor . In bright contrast to the classic film, the modern version features realistic conversational speech. While the speech often appears very vulgar, this is unfortunately very true to life for the majority of our modern day citizens. You won't see any unnatural physical accompaniment to the scripted conversations. Granted that as with any motion-picture production, the conversation and associated facial expressions will always be exaggerated in order to compensate for the enormous size of the theater screen. However, not to such a degree with they become obvious attempts at a theater style.

The next and most important difference between the two styles is the use of special effects. The classic film does not use special effects like their modern counterparts. This difference comes from the way the story is told. The traditional model tells the story with only a hint of fantasy. The end of the 1963 version had given the paranormal experiences a realistic explanation. Despite this, you still come away with the suggestion that the house was still haunted for some of the occurrences.

In the 1999 version, the story had taken on a very different shape by the middle of the film. Not one of the supernatural experiences was given realistic explanations. Around that time in the film, the plot was given a bizarre twist. That addition to the film turned this into a more than just a cosmetic makeover. The film had a new ending and a new plot. While the story line of the classic film had been incorporated, it was brought to a halt very early on rather than carried through to the end. In addition to the differences in story, the previously mentioned bizarre twists in plot were illustrated in a very fantastical manner. The film kept the supernatural aspect very strong through the plot. This supernatural aspect was embellished with special effects and graphic elements. This was one of the reasons that the film was highly criticized. It had taken the original story and turned it into something it was not. To put it another way, it did not stay organic to its original form taken from the 1963 version.

Just from these two characteristics, use of language and special effects, you can see how these two films represent two different styles. The classic drama is a prime example of theater-like productions. The classic drama as featured with our example of the 1999 film "The Haunting" is so different that it becomes a part of the sub-genre Horror. It is still a drama, but the supernatural effects and scary twists and turns in plot give the audience a very horrific experience.