The Skeleton Key

A decent horror film, reasonably suspenseful most of the time, but so stupid towards the end that it slams the door of the house. The voodoo theme is used here for a twist that is anything but clever. The casting of Sarsgaard, then, is somewhat by-the-book, given his typical roles. (10/23/2023)

The Skeleton Key is a skilfully made horror flick, but in terms of its content, it’s long past it’s sell-by date. The identification with the female protagonist, which is supposed to lead to the crucial conclusion, is effective, but not so much so that it makes for a satisfying ending. It’s rather just surprising. This is a solid thriller without any obvious flaws, but it’s not as intense as it wants to be. (09/24/2005)

Ehren Kruger obviously got his writing juices flowing during the remake of the first The Ring because the second film didn't feature much intelligence. The same can be said about The Key. It's not completely stupid, but it's punishingly hollow at certain points. Softley knows how to film dialogue to perfection, but the atmosphere eludes him - the protagonist wanders around the house while the more knowledgeable viewer suspects that there are no boogeymen in the attic. It gets a small bonus for the relatively clever point and a big one for Kate Hudson's nice ass. (02/21/2008)

For the ending, I give the film at least an average rating because it is still an interesting outcome, even though it takes quite a long time to reach it. At times, it is unnecessarily drawn out, which detracts from the atmosphere, and it ultimately relies mainly on the fact that the performances do not ruin the experience. Surprisingly, this is also true of Kate Hudson, whom I otherwise don't like at all. (06/29/2015)

A bona fide old-school thriller with a ghost story and a likable main character, but no original or exceptional content. You can see the craftsmanship, especially in the building of the atmosphere in the house or in the ending, and I'm sure that when it was released it could very well have been the event of the year, but after so many years and films seen, the individual elements no longer strike me as innovative, but all seen a hundred times nowadays. Even so, I can objectively say that the film definitely did not spare any tension and I enjoyed it quite a lot. In particular, I must mention the final five minutes, which surprised and grounded me and earned the film a fourth star. (05/01/2023)