In the words of one of the characters from The Nutty Professor 2, "this is some scary (*&^#$!" What Lies Beneath is the first scary movie I've seen since Final Destination almost four months ago. I reiterate my standard view on these kind of movies: I don't like scary movies. I don't like being scared, I don't like the supernatural, I don't like being scared by the supernatural throughout a movie.

Having said that, this is a good movie. There is a real mystery driving the movie. It's not just something killing people randomly until the heroes discover how to fight back. This is a movie where there is a history that is slowly revealed in bits and pieces, out of order, in the viewpoint of Claire Spencer, the main character played masterfully my Michelle Pfeiffer. You have to pay attention to those little details because it's not going to be explained to you later.

Although Harrison Ford has top billing, playing Claire's husband Norman, this movie revolves around Claire. Norman and Claire are a happily married couple, whose only daughter has just left for college. They have recently moved into Norman's dad's stately house in Vermont, next to a small lake and picturesque. Now that Claire is alone, strange things start happening: whispers, things break, doors pop open. Just little things that are filmed great. This is a well directed movie with good camera work. There's a lot of camera panning around, then focusing at just the right moment to make you jump. Sound is also used well, as this is a relatively quiet movie so you can hear the hints of noise that portent something about to happen.

Amber Valletta plays "the dead girl". It must be strange to have an important role but have very little "acting" screen type. Mostly pictures, dead body, glimpses. Sure, it happens a lot in movies, but it must be weird to audition for the role of "the dead body". Just doesn't seem like a career-building role to me.

I don't want to give anything away, because you really need to watch this movie cold to get the full effect. Luckily I don't recall the trailers giving away anything important. Harrison Ford gives a good performance. Michelle Pfeiffer gives a great performance. The setting is appropriately bleak and dreary. The mystery unravels slowly at first then everything clicks together near the end. Great scene of Clair fighting back without moving at all.

If you want to see a good scary movie with a real plot this is it. Whoever wrote the story did a good job. Everything comes together, everything flows smoothly, and the resolution is quite dramatic. Keep track of the dog.

I need to fill in some more space. Michelle Pfeiffer is one of my favorite actresses. She is quite beautiful at 43. Looking at her acting credits I see that I haven't seen that many of her movies. Ladyhawke is a bit of a cult classic. Dangerous Liaisons which one of my high school friends dragged me in to see, but it was good. Batman Returns: what can you say about about a woman in a tight leather body suit that won't sound sexist? Dangerous Minds was a good movie, more so because she didn't seem suited for the role. One Fine Day I liked. And I think that's it out of her 40 credits.

Harrison Ford of course has done a lot of great action movies. The Star Wars Trilogy, Indiana Jones, Tom Clancy adaptations. If he had been in The Hunt For Red October he'd probably be the King of Trilogies (disregarding Indiana Jones 4). Force 10 From Navarone, a good war movie. I suppose he hasn't gotten as much respect for his acting ability, being in a bunch of action movies does that to an actor. And I don't think I've seen him in a movie where he has a role that gives him a chance to act for a long time. Oh well, he's still someone who can carry a movie and is a big-name star.