The Skeleton Key
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A hospice nurse working at a spooky New Orleans plantation home finds herself entangled in a mystery involving the house's dark past.
What critics thought
A Louisiana Gothic thriller that most critics found atmospherically competent but dramatically hollow — the Bayou setting and Iain Softley's visual craft drew modest praise, while the sluggish pacing, genre clichés, and a twist ending that divided audiences were the main complaints. Largely mixed-to-negative on arrival, though it found a warmer afterlife with general audiences than critics gave it.
“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 movie's mastery of technique makes up for a lot.”
Roger Ebert·Roger Ebert
“tightly plotted and suspenseful enough to keep you guessing until the satisfying, unexpected end, which is worth suspending disbelief for”
Carina Chocano·Los Angeles Times
“Softley, working from a script by Ehren Kruger, puts so much care into layering moods and textures that he doesn't always scoot the action along as briskly as he should.”
Stephanie Zacharek·Salon
“a paint-by-numbers supernatural thriller that's more interesting for its locations than for its story.”
Edward Alter·Film Journal International
“A few good scares can't compensate for a sluggish pace, and the climactic twist comes as a surprise only because it doesn't make sense.”
Marsha Porter·DVD & Video Guide
Parents guide
- Violence
- moderate
- Sex
- mild
- Profanity
- mild
- Substances
- mild
- Intensity
- moderate
Genres
Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Cast & Crew
Iain SoftleyDirector
Kate HudsonCaroline Ellis
Gena RowlandsViolet Devereaux
Peter SarsgaardLuke Marshall
John HurtBen Devereaux
Joy BryantJill
Maxine BarnettMama Cynthia
Fahnlohnee R. HarrisHallie
Deneen TylerDesk Nurse
Ann DalrympleC.N.A.
Trula M. MarcusNurse Trula
Jen ApgarMadeleine Thorpe
Edward ShearmurComposer
Ehren KrugerWriter
Dan MindelCinematographyThe Skeleton Key
A hospice nurse working at a spooky New Orleans plantation home finds herself entangled in a mystery involving the house's dark past.
What critics thought
A Louisiana Gothic thriller that most critics found atmospherically competent but dramatically hollow — the Bayou setting and Iain Softley's visual craft drew modest praise, while the sluggish pacing, genre clichés, and a twist ending that divided audiences were the main complaints. Largely mixed-to-negative on arrival, though it found a warmer afterlife with general audiences than critics gave it.
“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 movie's mastery of technique makes up for a lot.”
Roger Ebert·Roger Ebert
“tightly plotted and suspenseful enough to keep you guessing until the satisfying, unexpected end, which is worth suspending disbelief for”
Carina Chocano·Los Angeles Times
“Softley, working from a script by Ehren Kruger, puts so much care into layering moods and textures that he doesn't always scoot the action along as briskly as he should.”
Stephanie Zacharek·Salon
“a paint-by-numbers supernatural thriller that's more interesting for its locations than for its story.”
Edward Alter·Film Journal International
“A few good scares can't compensate for a sluggish pace, and the climactic twist comes as a surprise only because it doesn't make sense.”
Marsha Porter·DVD & Video Guide
Parents guide
- Violence
- moderate
- Sex
- mild
- Profanity
- mild
- Substances
- mild
- Intensity
- moderate
Genres
Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Cast & Crew
Iain SoftleyDirectorKate HudsonCaroline EllisGena RowlandsViolet DevereauxPeter SarsgaardLuke MarshallJohn HurtBen DevereauxJoy BryantJillMaxine BarnettMama CynthiaFahnlohnee R. HarrisHallieDeneen TylerDesk NurseAnn DalrympleC.N.A.Trula M. MarcusNurse TrulaJen ApgarMadeleine ThorpeEdward ShearmurComposerEhren KrugerWriterDan MindelCinematographyStream
Rent & Buy