The Innocents (Jack Clayton)

The Innocents (Jack Clayton)



The Innocents (Jack Clayton)

Introduction

An attempt by a filmmaker to create a movie so ambiguous as to allow different interpretations that are equally plausible can be very dangerous. By this I am not referring to small plot details or individual situations that can be read differently by each viewer and can slightly alter one's perception of a film. I am talking about instances when a director leaves fundamental questions concerning the story and its characters unanswered, leaving it exclusively to the viewer to determine exactly what might or might not have happened. At its worst, it can create an incomprehensible mess in which an impossibly convoluted story overshadows any other merits that a film may contain (Inland Empire, anyone?). When done properly, it can create a rare cinematic experience in which a film remains fresh to repeat viewings. This is what makes Jack Clayton's The Innocents such a special film.

Discussion

Many similar films that rely on supernatural intrigue lose much of their punch once the mystery is solved. Films that were enjoyable the first time can quickly be cast aside, as once all of the questions have been answered there is little appeal left in the film. The genius of this film, and due to the skill of writers William Archibald and famed novelist Truman Capote, was to remedy such a situation by never answering whatever questions may have built up in the minds of the viewer. Instead, they lay out what appears to be happening and leave to each person to decide whether it is reality or hallucination (www.horrorexpress.com).

An adaptation of the Henry James novella, “The Turn of the Screw”, this film, co-written by Truman Capote and William Archibald, prefigures a number of other films that feature supernatural stories involving children - “The Omen” (1976), “The Changeling” (1979) and more recently, “The Others” (2001) and the Spanish language “The Orphanage” (2007). “The Innocents”, though, surpasses them all in its psychological subtlety and ambiguity. It is tempting when watching it to try to categorize the film simply, as either a straightforward ghost story, or conversely, to view the supernatural angle as merely a feint, and that the real story is that of a lonely, neurotic woman who has lost her bearings regarding events occurring around her. The beauty of James' story, and this intelligent adaptation of it, is the fine line it walks ...