A polished, old-school gothic ghost story with a strong central performance, patient dread, and a genuinely satisfying twist. It’s more eerie and atmospheric than violent, and it rewards viewers who like haunted-house mysteries that play fair with the audience.
The Others
Where to watch: Buy
Movie · Horror · Mystery
Thu · 1h 41m
Director: Alejandro Amenábar
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Alakina Mann, James Bentley
Overview
Grace is a woman who lives in an old house kept dark because her two children, Anne and Nicholas, have a rare sensitivity to light. When the family begins to suspect the house is haunted, Grace fights to protect her children at any cost in the face of strange events and disturbing visions.
Director
Alejandro Amenábar
Cast
Nicole Kidman, Alakina Mann, James Bentley
Curator Review
Verdict
A polished, old-school gothic ghost story with a strong central performance, patient dread, and a genuinely satisfying twist. It’s more eerie and atmospheric than violent, and it rewards viewers who like haunted-house mysteries that play fair with the audience.
Best for
fans of atmospheric gothic horror
viewers who enjoy twist-driven mysteries
people who like restrained, elegant supernatural suspense
audiences drawn to strong lead performances in horror
Skip if
you want nonstop jump scares or gore
you dislike slow-burn setups
you prefer horror that explains everything early
you’re not in the mood for a somber, claustrophobic tone
Overview
The Others is a finely controlled ghost story that understands the power of silence, shadow, and performance. Alejandro Amenábar keeps the film tightly wound, building unease through the house itself and through Grace’s increasingly fragile certainty about what is real. Nicole Kidman anchors everything with a performance that is both severe and deeply vulnerable, which gives the film its emotional weight as well as its menace.
Worth noting
What makes it endure is how classical it feels without becoming stale. The movie leans into gothic tradition, but it also works as a psychological mystery, constantly asking the viewer to reassess what they think they know. The atmosphere is the real engine here: candlelight, locked doors, muffled sounds, and a house that seems to breathe around the characters.
Bottom line
The ending is the kind that reconfigures the whole film in retrospect, and the movie earns that reveal by staying disciplined throughout. If you like haunted-house stories that are elegant rather than noisy, and creepy rather than chaotic, this is one of the better mainstream examples of the form.
Top Letterboxd reviews
scoobert doo (aka mo) (5★) · 6050 likes
first plot twist: *happens* me: i totally called i- second plot twist: *roundhound kicks me in the back of the head* shut it NERD
#1 gizmo fan (4★) · 4252 likes
nicole kidman can take that rifle to my head anytime she likes
lauren (3.5★) · 3844 likes
for the 15 years i had my cat, he and i would always watch movies together. this afternoon we watched our last one together. around 4 weeks ago my dad died. at 5:47pm, willy, my beloved cat of 15 years passed as well. i can confidently say willy was the best, most loving cat in the world. a beautiful little guy who grew up with me and saved my life too. i love you so much willy
Jay (3.5★) · 2776 likes
love insane women walking around a creepy house at night hearing shit, gotta be one of my favourite genders!
Roberto_ (4★) · 2486 likes
they’re social distancing
Themes
haunted house, gothic horror, supernatural mystery, maternal protection, grief and denial, isolation, religious unease, psychological suspense