Lists
- ranked 11 in The Guardian 25 Best Horror Films Of All Time
- ranked 562 in They Shoot Pictures, Don't They? 1000 Greatest Films (August 2005)
- ranked 581 in They Shoot Pictures, Don't They? 1000 Greatest Films (March 2006)
- ranked 583 in They Shoot Pictures, Don't They? 1000 Greatest Films (December 2006)
- one of 50 British Films Recommended by Martin Scorsese
- one of Empire's 250 Greatest Films You've Never Seen
- one of Guardian 1,000 films to see before you die
Brilliant adaptation of The Turn of the Screw, Henry James' novella about a governess (Deborah Kerr), newly arrived on a country estate, who becomes convinced that the house is haunted and the children under her care possessed. I didn't enjoy the book but this is a brilliant film, highlighting the ambiguity and potentially unreliable narration (is she actually just mentally ill?). Performances are great and Freddie Francis' black and white cinematography is beautiful. Surprised to like this as much as I did.