The Innkeepers (2012)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Mark W

  
  Is it just a matter of getting older or are horror films no longer able to capture the imagination anymore? A lot of recent one's have wisely went back to the premise of ghostly spectres haunting old houses and unsuspecting newcomers arriving to get the bejesus scared out of… More
  Is it just a matter of getting older or are horror films no longer able to capture the imagination anymore? A lot of recent one's have wisely went back to the premise of ghostly spectres haunting old houses and unsuspecting newcomers arriving to get the bejesus scared out of them. "The Woman In Black" is one, that tried and failed. This latest, from director Ti West, has a little more savvy and actually works reasonably well. 'The Yankee Pedlar Inn' is an old hotel that is plagued with stories of Madeline O'Malley; a ghostly woman that has roamed the hallways. On it's last weekend before closing, two college dropout employees Claire (Sara Paxton) and Luke (Pat Healy) decide to use a video camera and try to capture some evidence of the reported events. One of the last guests to check in is former actress Leanne Rease-Jones (Kelly McGillis), now specialising in the occult, who shares her knowledge of the hotel as things become increasingly sinister. For a start, this has a bit of an independent feel to it. The characters are likeable and although some performances are stretched, it benefits from the actors being relatively unknown. Despite it's indie feel though, it's shot with complete confidence. As any good ghost story should, it builds slowly and allows the audience to identify with the characters. It also has the perfect setting; a vast, empty, haunted space - that is actually shot in the real Yankee Pedlar Inn - and makes great use of this location. It also helps to inject a bit of humour and two thirds of the movie has it's tongue stuck firmly in it's cheek without compromising the overall intention; scares. When the final act kicks into gear and the ghost is finally revealed, it's get's very interesting and some genuine jumpy moments occur. However, the major problem that plagues this, is that it sets itself up for a big reveal and then doesn't deliver. For a film that prides itself in it's slow build-up and attention to detail, the resolution seems rushed, unexplored and unexplained. It's a competent effort that benefits from great production design and an eager director but it would have been so much better, if a little more care had been put into the script.

• Jeff "

  
  Ti West is quickly becoming one of the best directors in Independent horror. The Innkeepers is a slow paced, but effective ghost story. Horror films like this take time to build its horror. Thus you never know when something really terrifying will happen. The Innkeepers is a great… More
  Ti West is quickly becoming one of the best directors in Independent horror. The Innkeepers is a slow paced, but effective ghost story. Horror films like this take time to build its horror. Thus you never know when something really terrifying will happen. The Innkeepers is a great film because it uses the horror basics to create terror and atmosphere. Ti West's directing is impeccable, and that's what makes this film great. The story is simple and provides some great scares. The Innkeepers is one of those films that takes time for the story to unfold. Even if it's slow, it only adds to the films strength because it builds up the feeling of dread in your bones. Along with The Woman in Black, The Innkeepers is the strongest and best ghost film to come out in the horror genre in a long time. Stripped down to its core, The Innkeepers doesn't try to sugar coat anything with fancy special effects or cheap scares. The film is terrific and is a must see for horror fans who prefer traditional horror. Ti West is a great director and what makes him stand out is his films go for the traditional chills of old school horror films. The Innkeepers is a well crafted horror film that is a breath of fresh air in a genre where originality is a rare commodity nowadays. With The Innkeepers, Ti West is securing his place as one of horrors promising new directors. He's far more talented than the likes of Eli Roth and I can't wait what he'll come up with next. This is a must see for horror fans tired of the same old cheap scares and what something to genuinely scare them.

• MisterYoda ?

  
  three stars!!

• Lorenzo v

  
  <i>"A Ghost Story for the Minimum Wage"</i> During the final days at the Yankee Pedlar Inn, two employees determined to reveal the hotel's haunted past begin to experience disturbing events as old guests check in for a stay. <center><font size=+2… More
  <i>"A Ghost Story for the Minimum Wage"</i> During the final days at the Yankee Pedlar Inn, two employees determined to reveal the hotel's haunted past begin to experience disturbing events as old guests check in for a stay. <center><font size=+2 face="Century Schoolbook"><b><u>REVIEW</u></b></font></center> From 31-year-old director Ti West, who in 2010 directed the wonderfully retro The House of the Devil, comes The Innkeepers, a simultaneously old-fashioned (and unabashedly so) and tongue-in-cheek deconstruction of overused genre clichés such as "the boo moment." But that isn't to say The Innkeepers doesn't embrace these staples with equal affection, and eventually utilizes them wonderfully (and with ample flair) as things escalate toward the chilling final act. What initially distinguishes this supernatural thriller from others of its kind is that the first third of the film offers barely a hint that this is a horror movie. Sure, nobody would be mistaken that this wasn't a fright flick, but the debut act is more concerned with the character development of Claire and Luke and showing the simply the mundane nature of running a practically (excuse the wording) dead business. These scenes are punctuated with silver-tongued dialogue that would make Sorkin or Tarantino smile. Not to say that West's script is on the same level, but it is certainly akin to that style and speed of exchange. A lack of gore and a very deliberate pace may dissuade those accustomed to the quick-cut, bloody flashiness of mainstream offerings, but this movie again proves ample talent exists in indie circles. Overall very humorous as its pokes and prods at the genre, there is a sense of solemn irony as the credits roll. It is not a depressing finale, nor is it a disturbing one; I would simply peg it as especially fitting. A great score and a definite '70s vibe (far from as intentionally apparent as it was in The House of the Devil, which was in fact set in the 1970s) allows The Innkeepers to rise above recent horror offerings. At the very least, this is a passionate and noteworthy salute to the origins of the modern-day horror flick.

• Reid V

  
  Ti West has been on my radar since I first caught his film House of the Devil. An exercise in style, atmosphere, and devilishly relentless thrills, I knew immediately that West was a director to keep my eye on. While I was hoping for another film in the same vein, The Innkeepers is a… More
  Ti West has been on my radar since I first caught his film House of the Devil. An exercise in style, atmosphere, and devilishly relentless thrills, I knew immediately that West was a director to keep my eye on. While I was hoping for another film in the same vein, The Innkeepers is a whole other beast. Nixing the throwback vibe and going for a more straight forward approach, West delivers an interesting entry into the haunted house genre. With some actual characters to care for beyond their personal safety, some comedic bursts, and a more constant stream of jumps, West clearly doesn't want to repeat the formula of House. Yet, ditching the winning recipe of House has its share of drawbacks. First off, the Innkeepers doesn't feel as fresh and vital. Also, with an ending like the one in House, it's hard not to feel a bit let down by the final minutes of this film. However, West knows his horror and it is fun to see how he plays with the viewer's expectations. West delivers classic scares at some points, while being a bit more restrained at more seemingly obvious ones. All in all, The Innkeepers certainly displays West's evolution as a filmmaker. While nowhere near as frightening as House, I think it is overall a better film. The characters are fleshed out, the structure is tighter, and he actually casts his net wide and tackles more issues than just the paranormal. If he can find a way to merge the terror of House with the talent he displays here, then I think he will go down as one of the best horror directors of our generation.

• Markus R

  
  The type of movie you walk out of. What can I say about "The Innkeepers", the new horror film from budding writer/director Ti West, other than: it's about a scary as watching grass grow. Literally playing out like a bad and very long episode of "Are You Afraid… More
  The type of movie you walk out of. What can I say about "The Innkeepers", the new horror film from budding writer/director Ti West, other than: it's about a scary as watching grass grow. Literally playing out like a bad and very long episode of "Are You Afraid of the Dark" or the lesser known "Goosebumps" television series, "The Innkeepers" tells the story of two employees, one played by Sara Paxton doing her best Alexis Bledel impression (as if anybody even knows who those two actresses are) who work at the Yankee Pedlar Inn on the last days before the hotel goes out of business. Oh, did I mention that these two employees are also amateur ghost hunters? ANYWAYS...they decide to make it a point (on their final weekend open) to uncover the haunted past of The Yankee Pedlar Inn, which centers around a ghost story about a woman who died in the hotel, who may or may not hold a secret that nobody outside of this movie will care about. As much potential as that synopsis had, "The Innkeepers" is nothing more than bland and frightless (yes, that means lacking of fright), almost 100% due to some of the worst directing I have ever seen. Even the few scenes that have the potential to be scary are ruined by West's need to forcefully work in some awful deadpan humor. Hence, every single "ghost-scare" is awkward. And worst of all, "The Innkeepers" is a horror movie that ISN'T SCARY AT ALL! End result: if you are a fan of "The House of the Devil" (another film by Ti West) like I was, you will hate this movie. And if you haven't been introduced to the likes of Ti West, then "The Innkeepers" will make you want to run out of the theater screaming, "Someone, please give me a refund!" Side Note: I used to be a huge backer of West's work, ever since he got the screwed job by Lions Gate Productions over the horrid recut of "Cabin Fever 2". But "The Innkeepers" was so bad that I may have to rethink my stance on his work all together. Another thing that bothered me: The fact that the entire structure of this film (visuals aside) is so disjointed, points to a huge reason why "The Innkeepers" is seemingly impossible to get into. And when I use the term "disjointed" I am directly speaking of the editing style used here. I don't know if this movie was intentionally edited this way, but there are plotlines that lead nowhere, mother and son characters that are in half of the movie then just exit for no reason, an old man who seems intricate to the plot development, but his involvement in the story is never explained and worst of all, the main plot point about the woman who now haunts the Yankee Pedlar Inn is never explained to any point of satisfaction. If I hadn't heard West make a statement about how he had written, directed and edited this film himself, then I would be under the strong impression that this was yet another one of his movies that was taken away from him, only to be recut by the "big bad" production company. Final Thought: "The Innkeepers" must be what amateur film hell is like; and West isn't even an amateur. Cringe inducing dialogue, a plot which slowly paces forward to a lackluster conclusion and a movie monster (ghost) that visibly looks cheap and old fashioned(like a zombie out of the original 1968 "Night of the Living Dead") does not a fun time at the movies make. And while I do understand that West may have been trying to create a Sam Raimi (Drag Me to Hell, The Evil Dead) type of horror camp atmosphere, the end result is a movie that is severely lacking in the entertainment department, while simultaneously lacking in scares. And to think, there are a large number of critics that loved this film for some reason. Unbelievable! Written by Markus Robinson, Edited by Nicole I. Ashland Please visit my page on Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/x-52464-San-Jose-Indie-Movie-Examiner and leave any comments you have about this or any review. The more hits I get the better. Thank you Follow me on Twitter @moviesmarkus

• A.D. V

  
  Well made and all but a painfully slow film that by its conclusion reveals it to also be an utterly pointless waste of time.

• Eric H

  
  Ti West is regarded by many as the best American horror director of this generation and with such poor competition it's hard to argue this claim. I appreciate his approach to the genre, favouring atmosphere over cheap shocks yet with all his films there comes a point around the… More
  Ti West is regarded by many as the best American horror director of this generation and with such poor competition it's hard to argue this claim. I appreciate his approach to the genre, favouring atmosphere over cheap shocks yet with all his films there comes a point around the hour mark when you realise the purposely slow build up isn't actually leading anywhere. His latest effort follows this pattern but the improved pacing and lighter tone makes it his most accesible yet. Unlike most horror films featuring young people the characters here are quite likeable and believable, as someone with experience of minimum wage jobs Paxton and Healy seem all too real. McGillis however, continuing her career revival in horror, plays a character who seems to serve no real purpose, and adds nothing worthwhile to the narrative. Another problem is the hotel location, it just looks too modern to generate any creepiness. Maybe it's European snobbery but to me old means centuries not decades. The highlight is a sequence near the end involving Paxton trapped in the basement. It's probably the creepiest scene since the climax of "Rec". I view West as a low budget M Night Shyamalan, his skill as a writer is in no way on a par with his directorial abilities. While "The Innkeepers" is overall average fare it does at least show he's moving in the right direction but I believe his future hangs on whether he's willing to direct other writer's work.

• Ryan M

  
  *** out of **** It would seem that haunted house movies are making a return. Most recently, we got the surprising little horror flick "Insidious" - which dealt with a struggling family that was literally facing demons - and in 2009, there was this delightfully suspenseful… More
  *** out of **** It would seem that haunted house movies are making a return. Most recently, we got the surprising little horror flick "Insidious" - which dealt with a struggling family that was literally facing demons - and in 2009, there was this delightfully suspenseful and tense film known as "The House of the Devil"; and while it wasn't technically a haunted house film - since the house wasn't technically possessed or haunted by anything (it was all in the inhabitants) - but oh, the house was pretty damn creepy. Now, the director of that film - Ti West - has returned to familiar grounds once again with "The Innkeepers"; a strange, clever ghost story that is about as delightful and genuine as the film that preceded it in Mr. West's career. If you know me, and have been following my review contributions for a while now, you'll remember that I absolutely adored "The House of the Devil", and therefore I felt this film had some pretty big shoes to fill. I was perfectly fine if it could only fill them half-way - because that's better than nothing - but it would have been a nice little shocker if it had turned out a perfect fit. While it isn't an instant classic-in-the-making like the said film; "The Innkeepers" is spooky - and also very, very good at what it does. Since hotels are the perfect place for paranormal going-ons these days; West sets his story in The Yankee Pedlar Inn, which is to close down for good very soon. While the owner is away, two employees - Claire (Sara Paxton) and Luke (Pat Healy) - look after the inn and anyone who checks in during these last few days. For a while, the film toys with the eternal question: what's an innkeeper to do? The question gives the film a chance at building up suspense for a bit; to make us wait for the horror part of the story to kick in, and believe me, when it does; it most certainly DOES. Claire and Luke share a mutual appreciation for ghost stories and paranormal activity. There's a legend that originated inside the hotel walls that tells the melancholy tale of a bride who hung herself when her groom stood her up on their wedding day. The young innkeepers decide to spend some time ghost-hunting; a lot of which doesn't kick in until the second half of the film, because the first half is almost entirely devoted to giving us a feel for these people and what they're about. They turn out to be very endearing - in the end - if not slightly one-dimensional. But in this case, they are so likable that one-dimensional is better than no dimension at all. While the duo is out recording ghostly audio recordings and the like; two guests check in at the inn. One is an actress-turned-spiritual-medium, Leanne "Lee" Rease-Jones (Kelly McGillis); and the other is an odd old man (George Riddle) with important ties to the hotel and its past inhabitants; perhaps even the ghost of the bride. While it's mostly a good time at the movies, the film does have its share of problems. At times, the focus on suspense reduces the screenplay to reliance on standard genre formula - which isn't a necessarily bad thing as long as I'm kept entertained and engaged (which I was). I can gladly say that, thanks to the efforts from just about everyone involved, I was never bored; but a problem is a problem, and there's a few considerable bumps in the road to the movie's climax - which is, by the way, far less impressive than I anticipated. But let's not let that spoil our fun. There are two halves that complete the whole of the heart for this film. One half is the chemistry shared between stars Paxton and Healy; with the former showing more talent than she ever has on-screen prior to this, while the latter shows that he's a genuine funnyman - one who I will surely look out for in the near future. The second half is West's direction; which is always spot-on. I admire his eye for tension and scares - of which there are plenty. I admit that it's a bit of a change in general tone in comparison to West's previous feature, but fans will not be disappointed. There are plenty of basic stylistic queues that those happily - or unhappily - familiar with West's past films will pick up on without effort; and this very style is illuminated by Jeff Grace's creepy score and Eliot Rockett's beautiful cinematography. "The Innkeepers" is plenty far from perfection, but it's got more than enough going for it. Ti West seems fully on board for this one - as he has been for all of his films do date - as are the cast members. If you're one of those people who believes not all horror needs to be sadistic and gory, then this is another ingeniously ghastly marvel; if only a minor one at that. But hey: they tried, and they succeeded. I enjoyed the hell out of "The Innkeepers" and I'd definitely recommend it to any fellow horror fans out there. For the unassociated; it's funny and scary enough to suffice if you come in with an open mind. It's no classic - in my honest opinion - but if you know what the word "solid" means, well; then there you have it. *You can rent the film on VOD (Video on Demand) right now for $10; or if you'd rather not fork up that money for a mere 48-hour rental, "The Innkeepers" creeps its way into limited theaters 2-3-2012.*

• Philip P

  
  There was something oddly ineffective about "The Innkeepers". While its poster and tone are nice throwbacks to classic campfire horror, there is little to be gained from the nearly two hours we spend with these characters. I dug director Ti West's previous horror… More
  There was something oddly ineffective about "The Innkeepers". While its poster and tone are nice throwbacks to classic campfire horror, there is little to be gained from the nearly two hours we spend with these characters. I dug director Ti West's previous horror throwback "The House of the Devil" and was expecting a little more of the same here with his take on the creepy rather than the scary. While the story revolves simply around the last open weekend of the Yankee Pedlar Inn, an old hotel who's last twop employees are staying the weekend their as the owner has left town. Sara Paxton as Claire and Pat Healy as Luke have fine chemistry and produce relatable characters to guide the audience through their ridiculous predicament. The negatives that the film produces outweigh the creepy set design and actors willingness though as the script just doesn't give them much to do. Their is a scare here and there, but nothing really to make us care what might happen to these guys and not enough of a backstory to get us really caught up in the mythology of the hotel. What it comes down to though is the fact that for most of the running time I was bored and had I watched this at a theater rather than at home I'm pretty sure I would have fallen asleep half way through. Sure, the ending picks up a bit and slightly redeems itself, but not enough to warrant recommending a rental.

• August S

  
  Sara Paxton and Kelly McGillis were incredible. The tension and scares were ridiculous that it works, but it kinda slowed on the middle part but still. The story is not that new, yes, but it's really new in other aspects.

• Jason R

  
  Under the direction of Ti West. The Innkeepers is the most likable and dare I say funniest films I have seen lately. Yes. I said funniest! Sara Paxton and Pat Healy have an amazing chemistry together. Add an unforgettable performance by the amazing Kelly McGillis, and you have a… More
  Under the direction of Ti West. The Innkeepers is the most likable and dare I say funniest films I have seen lately. Yes. I said funniest! Sara Paxton and Pat Healy have an amazing chemistry together. Add an unforgettable performance by the amazing Kelly McGillis, and you have a very smart and witty horror film that is so full of charm and intrigue. That It will keep you fully engaged, all the way to its end. The film is not available on DVD yet, however it is available on demand from most cable providers. I strongly recommend you check this out.

• Francisco G

  
  Much like Ti West's previous House of The Devil, this is a slow-burn and carefully elaborated movie, moved by great performances by the cast and despite being set on present date, still keeps the old school vibe of the director's previous movie. It has the same problems… More
  Much like Ti West's previous House of The Devil, this is a slow-burn and carefully elaborated movie, moved by great performances by the cast and despite being set on present date, still keeps the old school vibe of the director's previous movie. It has the same problems of House of The Devil which is not delivering on the scares/creepy factor in the end after such a great build up (though there's a couple of really well pulled off screen tense scenes) and not being entirely original.

Read all 13 featured audience ratings