Helen Mirren and Jason Clarke to co-star in horror-thriller Winchester

Last Updated on July 31, 2021

The story of the Winchester Mansion is a fascinating one, and one that could be the basis of a pretty good movie. The idea that the heiress of a fortune built on the Winchester rifle would go insane with guilt at all the people her husband's invention killed is interesting, and a potentially meaty role for an actress to sink her teeth into. And with Helen Mirren cast as the eponymous Sarah Winchester, you know she's going to knock it out of the park. I'm just not sure the film itself will.

Here's the synopsis:

The film follows the story of firearm heiress Sarah Winchester (Helen Mirren), who was convinced that she was haunted by the souls killed at the hands of the Winchester repeating rifle. After the sudden deaths of her husband and child, she threw herself into the 24-hour a day, seven days a week construction of an enormous mansion designed to keep the evil spirits at bay. But when skeptical San Francisco psychiatrist Eric Price (Jason Clarke) is dispatched to the estate to evaluate her state of mind, he discovers that her obsession may not be so insane after all. WINCHESTER will take audiences inside the labyrinth like house that is believed to be one of the most haunted places in the world.

Oof. I was with it right up until the moment it seems that the mansion is actually haunted. I feel a movie dealing with guilt and insanity is great enough, especially with Helen Mirren playing the role. For the movie to add (probably) terrible CGI ghosts and dumb jump scares seems like a wasted opportunity for both the talented Mirren and her also talented co-star Jason Clarke.

But who knows? Maybe it'll be more ambiguous, atmospheric, and eerie? Or maybe the jump scares and ghosts will actually be badass? We won't know until the trailer and movie come out. But right now, color me skeptical.

What do you guys think? Would it be more interesting for the movie to simply explore guilt and insanity? Or is it better to spice things up with ghosts and scares?

Helen Mirren will next be seen in FAST 8, coming out April 14, 2017