Presence of Mind

1999

Action / Drama / Horror / Thriller

5
IMDb Rating 5.3/10 10 842 842

psychological horror based on novel or book possession ghost story governess evil child

Plot summary

A governess, caring for two children at a remote estate, becomes convinced that the grounds are haunted and the children are under an evil influence.

Director

Antoni Aloy Photo
Antoni Aloy

Top cast

Jude Law Photo
Jude Law as Secretary
Lydia Zimmermann Photo
Lydia Zimmermann as Mourner 2
Lauren Bacall Photo
Lauren Bacall as Mado Remei
Harvey Keitel Photo
Harvey Keitel as The Master
720p.WEB 1080p.WEB
944.27 MB
1280*714
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
24 fps
1 hr 42 min
Seeds ...
1.71 GB
1920*1072
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
24 fps
1 hr 42 min
Seeds 2

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by Stevieboy666 4 / 10

A disappointing adaptation of a classic ghost story.

This is an American/Spanish movie adaptation of the classic Victorian ghost story "The Turn of the Screw." I would urge anyone to seek out the wonderful "The Innocents" (1961) version instead of this poor effort. Sadie Frost plays a young governess hired by a rather creepy uncle (Harvey Keitel), referred to as The Master, to care for his orphaned nephew Miles and niece Flora, two young children that live in a large old Spanish villa. The house is haunted by two former employees. The film started off quite disturbingly by featuring the real life bizarre Victorian practice of posing a dressed corpse next to family members in order to be photographed. I watched this on Talking Pictures TV (UK), they rated it 18 but apart from one brief scene of nudity and the suggestion of incest between Miles and his sister I found the film to be rather limp. The scenes showing the two ghosts - one male, one female - were poorly staged and not in the least bit scary. I didn't think much of Sadie Frost's performance, I was pleasantly surprised when she briefly stripped off naked in front of a long mirror though. As far Harvey Keitel, he is only in the film for a few minutes at the start. Look out for the crew member wearing denim jeans next to a horse, he's even looking at the camera! One of the few positives for me was the filming location at the Raixa Estate on the Spanish island of Mallorca, an impressive old house with nice palm fringed gardens. Despite a fairly promising the start the film soon goes downhill and ends disappointingly. There have been several film and TV adaptations of this story, this being the worst that I have seen to date. Watch The Innocents (1961) instead!
Reviewed by daver6 4 / 10

A Bit Bland

Interesting location in Spain, nice and sunny, however, it was a bit bland (and obvious) and I never felt any tension or anxiety throughout. Sadie Frost as the governess was mediocre at best, although she had a certain sexiness and wanton look about her which tied in with the underlying sexual tension. There is a full frontal of her, which although attractive, moves the film further from any unsettling atmosphere. The other actors were fine with Lauran Bacall taking the acting honours.An example of why it did not generate any feelings of nervousness was the appearance on the water, which was so badly done and so obvious in how it was achieved. Contrast that with the same appearance in The innocents, the 1963 version of Turn of the Screw, where the appearance was genuinely creepy and unsettling.So although worth watching, The Innocents remains the best version of The Turn of the Screw, as the acting of all, particularly Flora, and Miles with his knowingness, is far superior (apart from Lauran), and is a genuinely creepy and unsettling film.
Read more IMDb reviews

2 Comments

Be the first to leave a comment