AN AMERICAN HAUNTING (2006) **1/2 DVD review by BIG WHOOP

Let me just say that ghost stories are fascinating to me. They scare the bajesus out of me but I keep coming back for more, that’s the point right?

A few months back, while talking with relatives one night, I discovered that I am related to someone involved in one of the most famous American ghost stories, the “Bell Witch.” I found myself reading up on this story; I researched the subject and found it very interesting. So I decided to check out a movie about the haunting of the Bell family.

I have to say I didn’t agree with this version of the story at all. Oh it scared me, don’t get me wrong. In fact in the first 5 minutes of the film I had to stop the movie and call a friend over to watch it with me (yeah yeah yeah I’m a weenie, what of it?).

The movie was good up until the writers decided to get creative and try to explain the haunting. It’s all speculation as to what was really behind the haunting and I’m all for creative writing but this movie is just bad writing. I don’t buy for one minute that the reason behind the haunting was incest. Seriously!?

Ok so here’s the story for you, The Bell family moved to Tennessee in the early 1800’s and soon after they built the house they started to experience strange occurrences. The usual, pounding on the walls, whispers, apparition and eventually it turned violent with hair pulling and slapping ect…. It seems like the haunting are centered around the young girl, Betsy Bell. She is the one who is getting physically abused by the ghost.

Well in the movie the reason for the haunting turns out to be because Betsy is being raped by her father, John Bell, and is suppressing the memories of the events. Apparently the rapes have killed a part of Betsy’s soul and that fragment of her soul is haunting her, roughing her up to make her remember. At the very end of the movie when she finally remembers what’s been happening to her she kills her father by poisoning him.

Now I don’t know about you but that is so far fetched that it comes across as ridiculous, and for good reason. I’m a southern girl and I know people all tease southerners of incest all the time. However, incest is a real problem all over the world not just here, but I have never heard of a victim of rape haunting themselves.

A more historically accurate movie about the Bell Witch is The Bell Witch Haunting (2004). I haven’t found it on Netflix but when I do get my hands on it I will be forcing some poor soul to watch it with me.

Now for a more pressing topic, Coop, now that there is a girl hanging out on this site, how about you keep that freak of a clown on a leash or something. He drools and that’s not cool, plus clowns creep me out. I saw him the other day and he offered me a balloon and said something about “they all float down here”. He’s not right.

-Big Whoop

Trailer below…

P.S. To Big Whoop from Dark Side…

LOOK BEHIND YOU!!!