The Innkeepers

The Yankee Pedlar Inn, rumoured to be one of New England’s “most haunted hotels”, is about to close down for good. Only two staff members remain for its final weekend in operation – Claire (Sara Paxton), a country girl who resents her front desk duties, and Luke (Pat Healy) – a nerdy ghost-hunter who harbours a secret a crush on his colleague.

Upon the arrival of a number of off-beat guests, a bored Claire succumbs to Luke’s hobby, and soon focuses her energy on making contact with a ghost she believes is haunting the hotel. She even enlists the help of guest Leanne (Kelly McGillis), a washed-up actor with an interest in the supernatural. They’re soon to unleash a series of events that reveal the dark history of some of the hotel’s former guests.

Paxton is convincing in her role as the boyish heroine who is reluctantly drawn into a world of the supernatural, whilst Healy is endearing as the apathetic  tech head with a soft spot for his partner. Both actors do a great job in capturing the typical mood of hip Gen Xers stuck in a low-paid job.

The Innkeepers is an obvious homage to Kubrick’s The Shining. The film is slow-paced, as the sleepy camera drifts through empty hallways and unoccupied lobbies. It also evokes the mood of films The Others and The Orphanage, both of which deal with a protagonist who must confront the entities that occupy their houses.

For horror fans wanting a good old fashioned scare, The Innkeepers will do it for you. For those who are hoping to see a fresh slant on this over-exhausted genre, don’t expect too much.

The Innkeepers opens at Cinema Nova, Carlton on Thursday 31^st May 2012. For session times and ticketing information please visit: cinemanova.com.au