I was so looking forward to this mini-series as I have heard a lot about the true story on which it was based. In fact, I remember at a young age, seeing the photo of Janet seemingly levitating in a book about ghosts in one of my friends’ houses. Since then, it has always stayed with me. So when I saw the trailer for the series I couldn’t wait to watch it.
Based in the late 1970’s, it centres around the Hodgson family, mainly the 11 year old daughter Janet. The first episode sees Janet playing hide and seek in a cemetery where she sees an old man watching her. After that, strange occurrences begin happening in her home and she believes the old man to be a ghost who followed her home. When the happenings start to increase, the local media are called in, who capture photographic evidence and who then decide to contact the Society for Psychical Research.
The first thing I will say is that I thought the acting was incredible. I watched the ‘Behind the Scenes’ episode too and the difference in the actors to their characters showed how well performed it was. Timothy Spall who played Maurice Gross and Juliet Stevenson who played his wife Betty, were particularly impressive during the more heart-wrenching scenes. Eleanor Worthington-Cox who played Janet was just wonderful in her role and she was very convincing as a confused, frightened little girl. A small (very small) thing I disliked about it though, was the music in the background in particular parts. When the marbles and lego were being thrown around the room, the music seemed to belittle what was happening and make it seem like a bit of a joke. I’m not sure if this was the intentions of the producers or not, but if it was then I don’t know why they would do that when other parts were so serious.
What was most interesting about the series is that it left it open to interpretation. Yes, it showed things that were inexplicable, but it also steered clear of labelling it one way or another – honouring the opposing views from people regarding the true story. I think that was rather refreshing, as it gave me the chance to reflect on whether I believed it was real or not. I must say, I am still doubtful to its origin either way. Part of me wants to think it was real, and with such a variety of people, including professionals, witnessing the phenomena, it is quite easy to believe that something did happen that was otherworldly.
However, there are people, again, professionals, who think it was all a hoax, be it intentional or not. Now, I am not sure where I stand on the belief that a young girl can make noises and move objects just because she is of pubescent age, although I do agree there could be many other factors involved including group hysteria where they all believe they saw or heard the same thing. That brings me to the voice of the old man. I would say it was Janet putting it on, pretending it was the ghost talking through her – that is until you see Maurice fill her mouth with water and tape it up and the voice still speaks. It is documented that the same experiment happened in the true story, with the same results. That makes it a lot more difficult to explain. There are a lot of conflicting opinions surrounding telekinesis and while I believe the mind is very powerful, I don’t believe it can move objects through will alone.
So, where does that leave me? Undecided. I enjoyed The Enfield Haunting and I watched ‘Interview with a Poltergeist’ which spoke to the real-life people involved, but there are too many conflicting sides for me to settle on one belief. I would have to say that, yes, I believe the family were haunted by a poltergeist, but that I also believe a lot of it was either them playing pranks or their imagination. Either way, I am not sure we will ever know the truth behind the story, but The Enfield Haunting makes a very enjoyable and interesting watch and I would recommend it for anyone, whether a believer or a sceptic, as it covers both aspects nicely.
What was most interesting about the series is that it left it open to interpretation. Yes, it showed things that were inexplicable, but it also steered clear of labelling it one way or another – honouring the opposing views from people regarding the true story. I think that was rather refreshing, as it gave me the chance to reflect on whether I believed it was real or not. I must say, I am still doubtful to its origin either way. Part of me wants to think it was real, and with such a variety of people, including professionals, witnessing the phenomena, it is quite easy to believe that something did happen that was otherworldly.
However, there are people, again, professionals, who think it was all a hoax, be it intentional or not. Now, I am not sure where I stand on the belief that a young girl can make noises and move objects just because she is of pubescent age, although I do agree there could be many other factors involved including group hysteria where they all believe they saw or heard the same thing. That brings me to the voice of the old man. I would say it was Janet putting it on, pretending it was the ghost talking through her – that is until you see Maurice fill her mouth with water and tape it up and the voice still speaks. It is documented that the same experiment happened in the true story, with the same results. That makes it a lot more difficult to explain. There are a lot of conflicting opinions surrounding telekinesis and while I believe the mind is very powerful, I don’t believe it can move objects through will alone.
So, where does that leave me? Undecided. I enjoyed The Enfield Haunting and I watched ‘Interview with a Poltergeist’ which spoke to the real-life people involved, but there are too many conflicting sides for me to settle on one belief. I would have to say that, yes, I believe the family were haunted by a poltergeist, but that I also believe a lot of it was either them playing pranks or their imagination. Either way, I am not sure we will ever know the truth behind the story, but The Enfield Haunting makes a very enjoyable and interesting watch and I would recommend it for anyone, whether a believer or a sceptic, as it covers both aspects nicely.
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