Ann Dalrymple, Deneen Tyler, Fahnlohnee Harris

Set largely in the dark backwoods just outside of New Orleans, The Skeleton Key stars Hudson as Caroline, a live-in nurse hired to care for an elderly woman's (Rowlands) ailing husband (Hurt) in their...( read more  read more... ) home...a foreboding and decrepit mansion in the Louisiana delta. Intrigued by the enigmatic couple and their rambling house, Caroline beings to explore the old mansion. Armed with a skeleton key that unlocks every door, she discovers a hidden attic room that holds a deadly and terrifying secret.

Flixster Users

63% liked it

173,026 ratings

Critics

38% liked it

143 critics

PG-13, 104 min.

Directed by: Iain Softley

Release Date: August 12, 2005

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DVD Release Date: November 15, 2005

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Stats: 7,775 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (7,775)


  • January 21, 2009
    I really liked the ending to this film, but it was a long time in coming. I probably liked this film because I don't usually like Kate Hudson's comedies and I found the tone of this film a refreshing change. It's a much better use of the actress. The story is a good one, and it's...( read more) probably easy to make a scary movie if it's set in the Bayou. This movie also gets mad props for coming up with a genuinely inventive and new twist ending, something lacking in the horror field as of late. Really interesting movie.
  • August 31, 2008
    Hell.
    "Been there, done that", "Déjà vu a million times", and even some "I deserve a kick in the groin for downloading this" moments splashed all the way through this piece of crap.

    That is, until the last five minutes.
    2.5 stars solely for the ending and because I have a thing ...( read more)for Kate Hudson which I'm still not quite able to put my finger on.
    But I will, eventually.
    And when I do, I will f...

    Nah.
    2.5 stars solely for the ending.
  • July 2, 2008
    Filmed in New Orleans and it's surrounding area I was really hoping for much more than I got. They could have done so much more with this storyline. It was pretty weak.
  • June 29, 2008
    Creepy movie with some nice twists.
  • May 28, 2008
    One of the few horrors out there that made it's way onto my dvd shelf.

    Kate Hudson portrays a nurse who goes to work for an eccentric couple living in New Orleans. She is given a spare key to the attic and tries to uncover the secret the family have been hiding for decades.

    Ka...( read more)te Hudson didn't do such a marvellous job with this one, but Gena Rowlands steals the show without a doubt. John Hurt's character is confined to making odd noises and pointing so we'll forgive him for that.

    What makes this movie so noteworthy and standoffish from other horrors is the situation. It's the fact that, somehow, it could be real. There is no senseless blood and violence or silly American girls screaming their heads off. It's a tense thriller with a supernatural touch.

    It decreases in entertainment value after the first time (lost a half star), but it's definitely one of the better horrors out there.
  • November 19, 2009
    Lots of twists which I like. Not as scary as I'd hoped though.
  • November 17, 2009
    This is a great movie.
  • November 9, 2009
    The music didn't annoy me as much as the first time I watched it. Good quality suspenseful movie. The ending would've been perfect if they didn't use it as the setup for a (probably lame) sequel.
  • November 7, 2009
    good movie but creepy
  • October 31, 2009
    "It can't hurt you if you don't believe it."

    Actually a lot better than I remember, and the ending means that there is re-watch value, The Skeleton Key is solidly - if unremarkably - directed, has a stellar cast (Sarsgaard, Rowlands, Hurt, and, erm, Hudson), good

    ...( read more)locations, and is, for the most part, well written. Ehren Kruger, who has written, amongst other things, the underrated Scream 3 and the overrated Ringu remake The Ring, has a gift for back-story and exposition, but he also frustratingly uses lazy shorthand to further the plot, making this an odd mix of great ideas and hack-worthy clichés. To her credit, Kate Hudson plays her role very well - her character makes some questionable decisions sometimes but the lack of passivity is refreshing in this kind of horror film. Meanwhile the film gets right the difference between Voodoo and Hoodoo and plays on the idea that magic will only work on those who believe it. The twist is a doozy, though it's sure to split viewers pretty much down the middle as to whether it satisfies or not. More important than that is that it is 'fair' and fits in with the story perfectly.

Critic Reviews


August 26, 2005
Nick Schager, Lessons of Darkness

A blundering New Orleans-set thriller under the spell of archaic stereotypes about Southern Bayou blacks. full review

August 16, 2005
Kurt Loder, MTV

[D]oesn't seem to promise much going in ... but its eerie premise lingers in your mind. It may not qualify as a true ghost story, but it's still pretty haunting. full review

August 12, 2005
Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times

There's lots of bad stuff brewing on the bayou in this occasionally scary but more often silly movie, which wastes some good actors along the way. full review

August 12, 2005
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

The film offers a rich gumbo of menace, mystery and magic - and then lets it go cold and mushy in a rainstorm of Hollywood haunted-house huggermugger. full review

August 11, 2005
Colin Covert, The Minneapolis Star Tribune

A spellbinding chiller. full review

August 11, 2005
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

The Skeleton Key is one of those movies that explains too much while it is explaining too little, and leaves us with a surprise at the end that makes more sense the less we think about it. But the mov... full review

View more The Skeleton Key reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


  • morphine
    August 20, 2008
    I love the ending, I'm glad the good guys won!
  • karthu1993
    May 31, 2008
    Well the twist was unexpected. but i am a little uncomfortable with the ending.
  • camypiranha
    January 6, 2008
    I think this movie is very intresting cause in the end you finaly figure out what's really hapning with the old men and his wife. I woldn't imagine that the old men is in fact the young who had taken care of the husbands
  • Liloh
    August 10, 2007
    I really loved this Movie. There are not much Ghosts or special effects in it. But imagination is inough. Kate Hudson has done a danm good Work. Its suspense till the End. But actually you dont have to be an Expert or Genious to figure out that the young Guy is not "From Good ones"
  • gabrielhortencio
    January 4, 2007
    A Chave Mestra". Ela recebe uma chave mestra que abre todos os comodos da casa e acaba desvendando parte dos segredos da casa que estavam escondidos no sótão..
    Feitiçaria, vida eterna, magia negra e muitas surpresas são os temperos deste filme. É bem bom esse filme!

    Pra quem gostou de "O Chamado", a chave mestra é um prato cheio.
  • dianace04
    November 11, 2006
    i thought this movie was gonna be very scary and bloody but, once i saw it, it wasnt anything of what i thought the movie is not bad but it isnt great

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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The Skeleton Key Trivia


  • Who played in the 2005 movie The Skeleton Key?  Answer »
  • What book is Caroline (Kate Hudson) reading to Mr. Talcott in 'The Skeleton Key'?  Answer »
  • Which Actress Was: -Helen Harris In Raising Helen -Andie Anderson In How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days -Penny Lane In Almost Famous -Molly Peterson In You Me And Dupree -Caroline Ellis In The Skeleton Key  Answer »
  • Who plays Caroline in The Skeleton Key?  Answer »

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