What Lies Beneath

Robert Zemeckis, USA, 2000, 129 minutes

Doors creak, framed photographs fall off tables, and faces appear in mirrors. It is comforting to think that in a special-effects driven 21st century Hollywood, simple effects still have the power to make you jump. What Lies Beneath is a thriller of the old school tradition, introducing the characters in an idyllic home beside a lake, and through a series of creepy episodes, leads to a chilling climax.

The story begins peacfully enough as Dr. Norman Spencer (Harrison Ford) and his wife Clare (Michelle Pfeiffer) drive their only daughter to college. On their return, Clare begins to suspect that their new next door neighbour has killed his wife. A series of unusual events then start to happen in the house, such as doors opening once they have been closed, the computer switching on automatically, and the bath apparently filling itself up to almost full with water. She investigates these occurances, and it seems that someone or something is trying to communicate with her. It would be unfair of me to tell you what happens after this, as the mechanics of the film require the audience to be oblivious to the many plot twists involved.

Zemeckis choose to shoot What Lies Beneath during the production hiatus on his Tom Hanks starring Castaway (Hanks was required to lose weight over this period to return for filming as an emmaciated Robinson Crusoe figure). However, this is by no means a secondary project, and more than fulfills Zemeckis's objective to direct an old-fashioned supernatural "chiller". It is true that Zemeckis uses every trick in the book to cause designer shocks, such as sharp, high-pitched violin strings leading up to each time we are supposed to jump. He also employs the Hitchcockian device of "build up..shock..release" to add to the tense, eerie atmosphere, and a strong female lead in the form of Michelle Pfeiffer, eloquently expressing fear with just her eyes and big toe!

What Lies Beneath is a long way from being an intellectual film, and certainly carries no real message. However it makes up for this in the most enjoyable way, with majestically engineered shocks, strong characters, scary atmosphere, and inspired plot twists. If you allow yourself to be seduced by What Lies Beneath, I guarantee you will love it. If I still haven't persuaded you, bear in mind that 25 minutes of screen time are set in Michelle Pfeiffer's bathroom.

Review by Neil Dawson
Written for EUFS Programme Spring 2001