The Haunting of Molly Hartley Now on DVD - Movie Review
The Haunting of Molly Hartley, which just released on DVD, is a strange 2008 horror film, somewhat derivative of movies like "To the Devil a Daughter," "Pray for Rosemary's Baby," and "The Omen."
The Haunting of Molly Hartley, which just released on DVD, is a strange 2008 horror film, somewhat derivative of movies like To the Devil a Daughter, Pray for Rosemary's Baby, and The Omen. The Haunting of Molly Hartley begins with the 1997 murder of a 17-year-old girl right before her 18th birthday. Her own father stabs her to death, ranting, "I don't want them to get you. I don't want them to get you."
Cut to present day when 17-year-old Molly Hartley arrives at her new high school. Viewers of The Haunting of Molly Hartley quickly learn that Molly hears things and has flashbacks to the time her mother tried to stab her. Molly is shy and withdrawn, and definitely a loner.
Ho hum -- ubiquitous "weird" Christian alert: The one person who tries to help Molly is the school outcast, a Christian girl apparently meant to be "weird," but whom I found to be fairly likeable. They "weird" Christian girl hums hymns in class, and is outspoken about her faith. We later discover that the Christian girl's aunt is a nurse in the mental institution where Molly Hartley's mother is an inmate. Anyone else find Christians being continually stereotyped as "weird" or worse in movies becoming tiresome?
A couple of unknown elements in Molly's new life in The Haunting of Molly Hartley are Joseph Young, the incredibly handsome rich boy in town who takes an instant intense interest in Molly, and the school psychiatrist who tells Molly she can call on her if she ever needs help.
When Molly ultimately turns to her Christian friend for help and asks for salvation in a terrified, panicked and confused moment, the resulting baptismal scene in The Haunting of Molly Hartley is shocking and disturbing and begs the question: what would you do if you found something about to become the equivalent of the antichrist in your hands in a baptistry?
The Haunting of Molly Hartley ends with an apparent "happy ending" as a radiantly popular Molly Hartley is about to graduate with honors, with the boy of her dreams and everything she could possibly want waiting for her. This joyful scene is subtly disturbing, because it is never made clear exactly what Molly Hartley might have become.
The Haunting of Molly Hartley is full of false scares and flashbacks that make it somewhat disjointed to follow. Molly not only has flashbacks of her mother, but also present-day visions of her mother returning to stab her. Although I did not find The Haunting of Molly Hartley particularly difficult to follow, I read on several movie boards that many viewers had difficulty jumping from flashbacks to the present to Molly's visions, back and forth, and found The Haunting of Molly Hartley very confusing.
The Haunting of Molly Hartley stars Haley Bennett (Music and Lyrics, Marley and Me) as Molly Hartley and Chace Crawford ("Gossip Girl") as Joseph Young. Although I can't really recommend The Haunting of Molly Hartley, I will say I was drawn in by the plot, in spite of the movie's disjointed style and Christian stereotyping. Fans of the horror genre or of provocative movies with spiritual twists may find The Haunting of Molly Hartley intriguing
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I watched it but was a little disappointed with the ending as well. Good review.
Sounds interesting. I do like psychological horror flicks.
I’d like to see it.. but I am so scared of horror films.. I end up switching the channel as soon as it gets scary… so I probably wouldn’t even get to see the DVD.