I know. The title doesn’t make a lick of sense, right? Thanks to my friend Mario Melillo of “Mario Likes Movies,” I can shed some light on this geographical mishap. Both of The Haunting in Connecticut movies are described as based on a true story. In reality, this is true as they are based off of two popular documentaries chronicling hauntings – The Haunting In Connecticut, and The Haunting In Georgia. In hindsight, the sequel should have been called “The Haunting 2: Georgia,” but I digress.
The Haunting In Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia follows a new family as they move into an old house in the sticks of Georgia. After being joined by the wife’s crazy sister, Joyce, the family quickly learns the history of their property. It was once used as a checkpoint for The Underground Railroad. Despite being used as a center for good intentions, the property is being haunted by something very evil. And this demonic presence is after the married couple’s young daughter.
The Haunting In Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia is written by David Coggeshall and directed by the returning Tom Elkins. The main cast is comprised of Abigail Spencer (Cowboys & Aliens), Emily Alyn Lind (“Revenge”), Chad Michael Murray (“One Tree Hill”), Grant James (Pulse 2), and Katee Sackhoff (Halloween: Resurrection).
It’s hard to start this review because I really enjoyed this movie. So, I guess I’ll start with what I enjoyed the most. The mystery, the levels of layers that The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia has is insane. Every five minutes you will learn something new and this pace keeps up until the last couple minutes of the movie, even during the big climactic showdown. I prefer layered movies in comparison to slashers and creature features because the anticipation and intrigue stays throughout the entire film. Layers in the plot is the easiest way to keep a viewer captivated the whole hour and a half. Layers, mystery, intrigue, and anticipation? Yes, sir!
The acting performances here were great too, especially for a limited theatrical and straight-to-DVD release. The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia is a welcomed return to horror for Chad Michael Murray, who had previously headlined the House of Wax remake. Another interesting casting note is little Emily Alyn Lind. For her age, Emily is such an amazing actress and with credits like the hit show “Revenge,” under her belt – she’s going to be a star one day, a big star. Coupled with above average acting is the fact that all the characters are pretty damn likable. My favorite was Joyce and I wish I knew her in real life! Hell, even the stereotypical African American preacher was a decent guy.
As far as horror elements go, The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia relies on its stunning imagery and special effects to scare viewers. Everyone who purchases this movie knows what they’re going to see – a lot of ghosts. Unlike the Paranormal Activity franchise, this flick uses the ghosts as real characters that are able to be seen and communicated with. It’s almost more of a psychological thing here instead of the shock and awe tactics in most ghost movies now-adays. Although, there is a pretty shocking scene towards the end involving a taxidermy needle… I would wager that watching a movie based on real life – if it is true, and these events happened to a real family – then that is the scariest thing about this film.
I don’t know what else there is to say. I really enjoyed this movie. Unfortunately, the small theater release and then being sent right to DVD is going to kill any big revenue and will keep The Haunting in Connecticut 2 from being a hit, which I think it should be. It is the best ghost movie – at least in my opinion – since Grave Encounters came out. Go check it out. If you’re a fan of ghost movies that are really well written, you will love this movie. Just forgive it for its stupid title.
