Angustia (1987) Online

I was surprised to see some of the reviews of Anguish (Angustia). I had the opportunity of playing an L.A. cop in the film - it must have been 100 years and 25 pounds ago! As the film seems to have elicited some interest, I'll volunteer some background information.

The film was mostly shot in.... Barcelona, on an obviously shoestring budget. I was initially "signed on" as an ambulance attendant, but either my "delivery" or size turned me into a cop with a couple of lines, learned the same day as the shoot.

The exteriors for the "new movie" sequences were shot on a street created in a large parking lot in the "Zona Franca" of Barcelona. Apparently a stock background depicting Culver City Ca. was shipped to Spain, and a good portion of Barcelona's American cars were used to create the traffic background.

Did I mention the shoestring budget? Most of the scenes I participated in were shot at least twice - from different angles - because only one camera was used.

I don't say this as a criticism - if anything it is a tribute to Bigas Luna, who was able to create a piece of America on the Mediterranean, and to make a number of non-actors seem credible even with speaking roles (including yours truly).

This creepy motion picture ingeniously realized exploring the hypnotic effects of cinema talks about a timid eye clinic intern (Michael Lerner, Omen 4) under the sway of his psychic and authoritarian mother (Zelda Rubinstein, Poltergeister). Hypnotized by swirling spirals and screechy bursts of gleaming wails, the ominous son packs up his surgical tool set and goes out a rampage . Our hapless soon-to-be victims arrive for a view a horror flick only to watch the gore unfold in the audience as well as on screen in which are showing the silent film titled ¨The lost world¨ and ¨ The mummy¨ . As a group of viewers are killed in the form of a screening of a horror movie that brings naturalism to life. As the terror picture shown to the audience gets more and more violent. The spectators (Talia Paul, Clara Pastor) see Lerner carving eyes on screen while a psycho-killer (Angel Jove) obsessed with the movie unleashes his own criminal spree on the unsuspecting spectators and he attacks anyone who crosses her way and soon the place is filled with people killed. The survivors trapped in the theater must fend off attacks of the murderers. At the ending the remaining public start the desperate battle for their lives and eventually, the theatre turns a walled-in trap. Soon it becomes clear that the parallel arguments gather together in deadly synchronization.

The picture is full of suspense,thrills, mystery, and lots of blood and gore .This slick gore-feast is a triumph of style over movie logic. It's packed with overwhelming body count, excessive gore, grotesque killing, and rivers of red blood. This is one of the most original utilization of the movie-within-a-movie with terror argument, such as formerly made Lambert Bava in ¨Demons¨(1985). The picture is smartly designed ,stylishly photographed filming in Barcelona by Civit and with a suspenseful musical score by Pagan . Bigas Luna delivers the terror movie goods with sense of style. He's an expert on murky atmosphere such as proved in ¨Caniche¨, ¨Bilbao¨ and ¨Reborn¨. The picture will appeal to horror buffs and Bigas Luna fans.

Before the film even begins, a message is displayed on screen warning you about the possibility of hypnosis and dizziness etc. In my opinion, that's a great way to hype someone up. And with hype, disappointment usually follows. But not with Anguish, this was a really cool little flick.

The flick actually is pretty much two movies in one. I'll only describe the first story, since if I tell you about the second, it's kinda ruining it for you. The initial story follows a son who is being hypnotized and forced into murder by his mother, played by Zelda Rubinstein, the tiny lil paranormal investigator in Poltergeist. It's a pretty simple premise at first, but once the other story kicks in, the movie's tension and entertainment value is severely upped.

The direction and atmosphere is all fantastic, the only minor problems is the acting, it's pretty amateur to a degree. But there are also strong performances as well, the son/murderer did a really good job. And it's killing me trying to recall what I remember him from! And at under 90 minutes, the movie doesn't last too long. Poifect!

It's a rare lil horror flick that should definitely have more of a following. With a cool idea leading the way Anguish is one flick any fan of horror or of our beloved lil Zelda should without a doubt check out.

A demented mother telepathically directs her middle-aged son on bloody missions of revenge.And when he's finished murdering his victims,he gouges their eyes out and adds them to the bizarre family collection.But that's only a movie:The real horror is in the cinema where the audience watching this terrifying vision is being murdered one by one."Angustia" is a pretty bizarre Spanish horror film.The concept is certainly interesting and the director J.J.Bigas Luna perfectly mixes the line between the reality and the fantasy world of film.The acting is first-rate and there is plenty of gore and tension to satisfy fans of slasher films.The film is relatively unknown,but if you get a chance watch it.Highly recommended.8 out of 10.

Undoubtably one of the scariest and under-raved horror films of all time. Zelda Rubinstein is unforgettable, and if u liked her in the Poltergeist films she is even more stellar here. Known to horror buffs as the all-time movie within a movie... but its psychological mind-warp scene is as tense as it gets. The under-tones of the snails and doves contribute highly to the paranoia. A re-release definitely should be in order; this film deserves a second look by all. Anyone who has extreme phobia of "anything" to do with harm to the eyes- beware! Unfortunate that most mark this off as a "gore-fest" when its anything but. It is a brilliant study of the mind, and will blow you away with its oddity.

This movie plays with the audience expectations in a level and maybe it have some characteristics of the terror genre that can be seen in a lot of movies but have some features of its own that makes the movie an original one. It's clear that this movie was not made with a big budget but the cast and crew give life to an imaginative screenplay .Rubinstein and Lerner are really great here. What surprised me of this movie are the original ideas . I will not spoil you the movie at all but after watching so many movies this one still surprise me.The Spanish director Bigas Luna directed this somehow atypical movie in his career , that usually treats themes far from the terror genre or the thriller.

It's a good achievement .

I have just watched "Angustia" for the fourth or fifth time, now on DVD, and I do not get tired of this original, bizarre and surrealistic cult-movie, very underrated in IMDb. I am a fan of Bigas Lune, and in my opinion "Angustia" is his masterpiece. The story is simple, but tense, with a soundtrack that recalls Dario Argento's movies. Michael Lerner, in the role of the mad ophthalmologist; Talia Paul, in the role of a scared viewer that becomes impressed with the film she is watching on the screen; and Ángel Jovè, in the role of a lunatic killer, are perfect. Zelda Rubinstein, with her weird tune of voice, completes the lead cast of this gem with a great performance. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Os Olhos da Cidade São Meus" ("The Eyes of the City Are Mine")

I'm not sure why this 1980s horror film is so overlooked. It is a very unique film, if a bit gimmicky. It stars Tangina (wait, I mean, Zelda Rubenstein, of course!) as a psycho-mommy whose relationship is a bit too tight with her son. In fact, she hypnotizes him on a nightly basis and has him going out about town, gouging out people's eyeballs for her personal collection! Just when you think the story couldn't get more bizarre, it does. This is definitely for fans of films about messed-up mother/son relationships. For those who can't stomach Tangina, you still might get a kick out of this truly original 80s horror flick. It's been compared to "Demons," but such a comparison is superficial. Beware, most reviews on this one feature major plot spoilers!

This movie reminded me of many others at some points but at the same time seemed original. It was fun to watch and even though there was a lot of gore, I could stand it since I was so puzzled by the exact plot and motives. The movie inside of a movie plot worked wonders here and the appearances of Zelda Rubinstein made me want to give this an 8, since they made the characters seem as though twirling their hair would take too much intelligence.

Bigas Luna's "Anguish" is a uniquely curious and creatively constructed Spanish horror film that'll unquestionably impress you a lot more than the average routine and dull 80's (American) slasher picture. Luna presents an odd film-within-film structure and, surprisingly enough, both segments contain equal amounts of suspense, creepiness and gruesome images. At first, we follow a middle-aged and slightly insane mother-obsessed optometrist as he goes out at night to butcher as many people as possible & cut out their eyeballs for his collection. His freaky mother (the squeakily voiced midget Zelda Rubinstein) commands him under hypnosis and his modus operandi isn't exactly subtle, as John removes his victims' eyeballs sadistically and without the slightest sense of emotion. Okay, pretty twisted & sick horror tale we got here, or so you think until, after the first couple of murders, it suddenly becomes clear that mother & son's crazed adventure is just an ordinary movie being watched in a fully-occupied theater. We're subsequently introduced to two attractive young girls – one of them feeling very uncomfortable with what she sees on screen – and then "Anguish" truly becomes a one-of-a-kind experience, since a totally new (and supposedly non-fictional) psycho-killer plot develops itself parallel with the macabre (and fictional?) events on screen! Yeah okay, I realize this all sounds very confusing and perhaps even a bit stupid, but director Luno presents it all dead serious and plausible. Simultaneously with John entering a movie theater in "The Mommy" (the title of the first movie) to collect more eyeballs, an actual deranged psychopath spots the two girls and intends to kill them. The film-within-film concept has been done before, but usually very messy and resulting in a severe anti-climax. In "Anguish", however, the tension is masterfully developed and the transitions from 'old' movie to 'new' movie are literally perplexing. Michael Lerner's eyeball escapades are grotesque and really gore (with extreme close-ups of gouged out eyes…yuck), whereas Patty & Linda's nightmarish trip to the movie theater is intense and claustrophobic. The final twist is predictable, yes, as Luna attempts to connect the characters of both films with each other, but I honestly think I would have been disappointed if something similar wasn't done. The acting performances are excellent. Especially Michael Lerner and Talia Paul are splendid, and even Zelda Rubinstein is tolerable. She annoyed the hell out of me in the overrated "Poltergeist" films, but her odd appearance is ideal for an artsy Spanish horror experiment like this. "Anguish" is a terrific film for trained genre lovers, regretfully underrated and misunderstood to this date. Highly recommended!

I first saw ANGUISH years ago and really enjoyed this film. I have yet to buy it only because I can find either only tattered VHS copies or over-priced DVD versions...Anyway the film starts off with a telepathically controlled "mama's-boy" who kills people and collects their eye's as souvenirs for his freaky mother. This goes on for a while, and then you find out that THIS part is just a film, and cuts to the audience. One of the members in the audience is "hypnotized" by the film and begins picking off the other audience members.

ANGUISH is a really original and stylish film. Good story, decent acting and some cool gore make this an all-around winner...now if I could just find a cheaper copy....Recommended 8.5 out of 10

While the movie was a disappointment, I (like many viewers I'm sure) was stunned by the cameo of the young actor, John Shelly, who played Patti's father. While he was only in the film for about 15 seconds, WHAT AN AMAZING 15 SECONDS IT WAS! Mr. Shelly (no relation to me - my name has an e before the y) in his all too brief moments on the screen indeed ran the gamut of emotions, from a deep brooding, DeNiro-like pathos (though DeNiro pales in comparison) at the thought of his daughter's near brush with psychopathic mayhem, to a charming whimsicality (a devilish smile reminiscent of Gable) when he realized she was in safe hands with the doctor, lacklusterly played by a journeyman actor who beat out Mr. Shelley for the part - no doubt due to directorial malfeasance - AND ALL THIS RELAYED TO THE AUDIENCE MERELY BY HIS REPEATED BLINKING. Through research I have discovered, to my endless bewilderment, that Mr. Shelly did not pursue his acting career, this despite a clamor from Hollywood and the repeated pleas of Copolla, Scorcese, Spielburg, and an endless parade of agents and stars (Meryl Streep apparently camped outside his door for a week before he could get a restraining order). Who can fathom what personal demon made him turn his back on this God-given gift, but the movie-going public has been denied a great star, one who could have brought the peoples of the world together in a ringing affirmation of their common humanity. God Bless You, Mr. Shelley, wherever you are!

I passed over this movie numerous times at my favorite movie store, and it wasn't until I came across the storyline that I knew I wanted to see it. So, I rented it as soon as I could, and I must say, I loved it!

The plot is quite simple. A theatre of people spend an afternoon watching a horror movie called "The Mommy," starring Zelda Rubinstein and Michael Lerner. It's about a mother who telepathically directs her son to kill people and steal their eyes for her. (And does it help he's an opthamalogist!) Meanwhile, in the theatre, Patty and Linda, two teenage girls, are both watching, Patty the squeamish one, Linda, the submersed one. Back and forth, the movie goes to the audience to "The Mommy," to the point that you feel like you are in that movie theatre.

And then you find out there is a killer there in the theatre, with the same mother obsession as the killer in the movie they're all watching.

I won't give away much more, other than that the movie is great. The killer almost imitates the scenes in "The Mommy," especially when Lerner's character goes to a theatre and traps the patrons in and starts to kill them, one by one. Actually, things are almost exact in some scenes. Soon, things become tense and suspenseful, especially in the scenes where Linda is hiding in the bathroom while the killer drags a few bodies in to hide them, then stops and hangs around in there. The best scenes in the movie! It may take a bit to not get confused by everything, but the way the film goes back and forth in the storylines is quite crafty, so I doubt you'll be too confused.

Overall, a fantastic film for any horror fan. The ending, of course, is a little odd, but I suppose accepting it for what it is is the best you can do. I think the film would have been fine without it, though. In any event, find this movie and watch it! It's very scary!

ANGUISH is the sort of film where you must walk into it blindly. Read nothing about it, no reviews, or even the back of the video box. This is by far one of the best films you've never heard of! Average horror film fans who flock to see SCREAM and SIXTH SENSE, (if they can really claim to enjoy good horror films) will probably dislike this one. It takes a true love for the genre to realize the beauty of ANGUISH. I've said to much already, see this at once!

After seeing Anguish, I know it will stay in the memory a while as it's not quite like anything else I've seen. However, outside of the central gimmick; there is unfortunately not a great deal to recommend it for. Bigas Luna's film is a horror movie within a horror movie, and as you can probably imagine from that description; it's a completely bizarre and surreal film. The title 'Anguish' seems to be a clue to the order of the day as both segments focus on putting the subjects in a state of anguish with a series of gripping occurrences. The film focuses on John Pressman; an optician with an eye problem and a strange mother. After losing his job, he goes out on a killing spree under the direction of his mother who apparently is using some sort of hypnosis. The spree goes on for a short while and then the film takes a turn for the bizarre as the focus pans out and we find ourselves in a movie theatre with a group of people watching the film we've been watching! However, it turns out all is not well there either, as one of the crowd is a maniacal killer.

The main problem I have with this film is simply that while the central idea is very good, the two segments of the story are actually quite mundane. They're both just your average 'serial killer' stories, albeit one featuring a great deal of eyeball violence. The director clearly wanted to excite his audience and get them on the edge of their seats, and while parts of the film are exciting - I didn't find myself in a state of anguish for the duration. I don't often find myself needing a particular point when it comes to serial killer flicks, but this film just feels a bit too intelligent not to have one. I can only assume that the director wanted to portray something along the lines of the idea that a potential killer could be influenced by what they are seeing on screen; although it's never really brought across. Distinctive performers Michael Lerner and Zelda Rubinstein are the pick of the cast and provide memorable leads. The film does deserve a lot of respect for going out and trying to do something a bit different and even though it doesn't come off as well as it might have; Anguish is still well worth seeing.

This is, perhaps, the oldest film I have seen by this Basque director, who, as I have said elsewhere on IMDb, is evidently a gifted director, though his films do not always please me muchly. I have already commented on Volavérunt (1999), Femme de chambre du Titanic, La (1997), Bámbola (1996), Edades de Lulú, Las (1990), and I have not bothered myself with Teta y la luna, La (1995), Huevos de oro (1993), Jamón, jamón (1992).

In `Angustia' Bigas Luna was already showing his geniality with preparing an idea and directing it on to celluloid. Here he went for the stark, brutal horror, absolutely face-on, without any overlaying of other softer scenes; he was obviously hell bent on shocking his audience, even to the degree of being repulsive, repugnant. In that, we can affirm he did not fail.

In this film we have the peculiar situation of watching a film within a film, and indeed there is a few brief moments of another film within that - one of those classics of the adventure genre of the late thirties/early forties, not by Bigas Luna.

A sacked Ophthalmologist under the evil influence of his mother, just loves cutting out people's eyes, and does so. Ugh. Two girls are in the audience watching the film; one is getting rather scared. However, things start happening in their cinema, whilst the main film on-screen continues its bizarre business.

Bigas Luna concocts a weird tale, horrorful and suspenseful as you can get, as he plays on the viewers' psychological perception, as well as on the viewers' revulsion. Bigas Luna spares nothing: he exploits the visual impact of repugnancy to the full, as well as even resorting to hypnotising through mesmeric images. And, as always, the film is meticulously made, with every care to detail. But, as always, Bigas Luna has a good eye for scrupulous scene-setting - unless the protagonist in this films gouges it out, of course.

For lovers of the horror genre - I am not - you could hardly find a more satisfying hour and a half of spending your time: Bigas Luna, as always, has an originality in how he lays it on and tells his story; more than a few shivers might well run up and down your spine whilst watching this one.

I wonder if I dare take off my glasses to clean them.................?

John (Michael Lerner), an orderly at a hospital, is hypnotised by his controlling midget mother (Zelda Rubinstein) who sends him to kill people and remove their eyes. After twenty two minutes of confusing horror, in which John's snail-loving 'mother' listens in on her pigeon-fancier son's murderous activities using a large shell (?!?!), it is revealed that everything we have seen thus far is a film within a film called The Mommy, being watched by an audience that includes teenagers Patty (Talia Paul) and Linda (Clara Pastor).

Terrified by the on screen carnage, Patty leaves the theatre and visits the loo, where she becomes convinced that the killer from The Mommy is lurking. She heads back to tell Linda, who reluctantly investigates and discovers that a copycat psycho (Àngel Jové) armed with a gun is preparing to go on a killing spree.

Cutting back and forth between The Mommy (a film that I doubt would draw in the crowds) and the 'real' action, director Bigas Luna experiments in mixing art-house surrealism with the slasher genre, which go together like oil and water, and chucks in some pretentious meta-cinema for good measure. The result is a woeful experience—tedious, repetitive, and thoroughly irritating (as if any film headlined by Rubinstein could be anything but!).

The core concept of this film is watching a slasher movie about people in a theater... who are watching a slasher movie themselves. The main idea certainly has merits and a lot of potential but alas, writer and director Bigas Luna never achieves it.

The first slasher (the movie within the movie) has occult and psychedelic overtones but is rather silly. It does feature the only two actors worthy of the title in Lerner and Rubinstein. The second film is uninspired at best and features awful acting all around. Both suffer from drawn out scenes that go absolutely nowhere.

The most excitement regarding Anguish is when you first discover you are watching a movie within a movie and then, you wait for something clever to happen... except it never does. Poorly written, shot, acted and edited, Anguish will mostly be remembered as a cool idea that may have been ahead of its time.

This is one of those films that starts out promising and then a quarter of the way through you realize that you've picked up something that is going to be a disappointment. And you'd be right.

This is also one of those films that shows the audience watching the film and that in itself is a novel idea if done right and this isn't.

What starts out as atmospheric and intense ends with a somewhat predictable and annoying end. Too bad too because the acting is actually quite good. Lot of money went into the sets and production design. Lot of work went into picking out just the right props. The film has a lot going for it including the original story but it isn't executed well. Why didn't they just make this a straight film? It could have been a great horror flick.

I say skip this and hunt out a different horror flick. If you want eyeball horror watch "Mansion of the Doomed".

At first it's the sheer uniqueness of the characters and situations that keeps you watching. Then, after about 30 minutes, you realize that this is one imaginatively written, ambitiously conceived horror pic. The director manages to sustain the tension in both the parallel stories (the "fictional" and the "real" one) - and that's quite a directorial feat. But there ARE some minor logical flaws in this movie (the ease with which BOTH killers murder their victims and pass unnoticed in movie theaters filled with people is a little hard to believe), and the final "surprise ending" is rather contrived, perhaps even predictable if you've seen similar movies (like Wes Craven's "New Nightmare" of 1994). (**1/2)

I was pleasantly surprised while watching this, finding it highly engaging. For a low budget movie, it is well-acted, well-scripted, and well shot! My only complaint is that, to me, it ran on a bit long towards the end. Pacing was good up to that point, but towards the end it felt redundant and labored. But that's a minor point on an overall fun film. Very glad to have found this gem!

The cast in this movie is pretty unknown except for Zelda Rubinstein who Poltergeist fans must remember as the little psychic lady with the kiddish voice. She is awesome in the role of the mother of a man working in a hospital. She possesses the power of hypnosis which she uses on her son John who goes on a killing spree. After John has killed his victims he cuts their eyes out to add to his collection. After 20 minutes we as viewer realize we are not the only ones watching this movie. We find ourselves in a theater where people are watching the adventures of John and his dominant mother as well. The hypnosis and the killings renders some people unwell. At one point one of the viewers must have been hypnotized that much she goes like copying killer John in some way. When John continues his killing spree in a theater we switch between scenes in two different theaters and it's sometimes hard to follow which adds to the tension. A very clever idea of the director to make this a movie within a movie and confuse the hell out of the viewers. Even though the ending was quite predictable and a little dumb that didn't take my enjoyment away for this brilliant piece of filming.

"Anguish" opens with the story of John (Michael Lerner), a middle aged man dominated by his demented mother (the unique Zelda Rubinstein). She hypnotizes him into going on a murder spree, so that he may collect his victims' eyes.

The catch here is that these opening 22 minutes are actually a movie within the movie. While Lerner ends up offing the people watching a showing of the original "The Lost World", the people watching *his* movie begin to be terrorized by another mother dominated madman (Angel Jove) wielding a gun.

This comes recommended to horror fans, who are sure to appreciate the clever way that director Bigas Luna ("Jamon Jamon", "The Chambermaid on the Titanic") so completely blurs the line between fantasy and reality. And he maintains this tone all the way until his resolution. Up until then, he keeps our attention with an efficient pace, enough splatter to please the gore loving crowd, and some very good suspense. Luna manages to create a reasonable American feel (with much better English dubbing than one usually finds in this sort of thing) while shooting on the cheap in Barcelona. He also gets fine performances from a cast with its fair share of non-actors.

The principal performers are very well cast. Lerner is a perfect combination of average schlub and sadistic psycho, and Rubinstein is incredible as the woman driving him to murder. Talia Paul and Clara Pastor are appealing as two girls watching the Lerner tale unfold on screen, and Paul really gives it her all in portraying anxiety and fear. Jove is suitably creepy.

As the action in both old and new movie begins to mirror each other, Lunas' movie builds to a highly engrossing fever pitch.

The closing credits are also quite appropriate to the occasion.

Eight out of 10.

It's been a good while since I've seen a horror movie this original. Anguish is very creative, especially for its time. Its clever use of the "film-within-a-film"(often mixing both so well you don't know what's the film they're watching and which is the film you're watching). Although it's far from perfect, this is a great big breath of fresh air.

The movie starts with a shy eye doctor, John, who still lives with his mother. John gets harassed by one of his patients when he gets the wrong contact lenses. His mother promises to make them suffer, unlocking a serial killer side to John. He makes a visit to the girl's house to give her the correct pair of lenses, and promptly kills her and her boyfriend. We are then shown that this is a movie, and there is an audience watching. We're introduced to two girls, one fully enjoying the movie, and the other completely horrified. As the movie continues on, and John's killings become more frequent and intensified, the girl gets more terrified, to the verge of tears. John enters a movie theater, and starts slowly killing the audience one by one. His killings become too much and the girl leaves to the bathroom. While in the stall, a man walks in. This causes her to go back to her friend to check out the bathrooms. What they don't know is that there is a real killer who has targeted their showing. He dispatches off a few of the staff with his silenced pistol, before coming into the screening. His killings start to mimic John's on screen. He grabs the girl and holds her at gunpoint, slowly slipping into deep lunacy. He talks to the screen, and his cover gets blown. The girl's friend alerts the police, who watch him waiting to make their move. They manage to get their shot and take him out, just as the other movie is ending. The girl is taken to the hospital, where she is attacked by the killer from the movie. As the credits role, it is revealed that this was all ANOTHER movie.

This movie is creepy and creative. The acting is very good in most places, nothing that's completely terrible and groan worthy. A lot of the movie has an Argento feel, kinda sleazy and gritty. There's a little bit of gore, but not as much as I wanted. The kills weren't that inventive but were satisfying enough. I think this is one that should be seen by lovers of horror and even those that are just looking for something different. The characters are pretty well developed, particularly the ones in The Mommy (the movie inside the movie). Highly recommended.

I am completely biased here, but this is one of those movies I have seen as a kid and made an impression on me. I saw it again just now and, even if it didn't have such an impact on me now, I remembered every scene. It was truly well done and memorable. Besides, everything with Zelda Rubinstein must be fun, right? :)

At this point I tell you that this is a fun horror movie and you should see it and stop reading any comments, including the rest of mine. It will spoil it for you.

The movie plot is at first about a serial killer mother and son duo, where the mother is hypnotically controlling her son in order to commit murder and then collect their victims eyes. However, we now see that this is only a movie that two teenage girls are watching in a theater. One of them is obviously distressed and wants to leave, but her older sister insists they watch it. Then the movie they are watching starts to sip into their reality, making the younger sister more and more terrified.

Bottom line: this is one of those movies engineered to make you identify with their characters to a very high degree, thus making the plight of said characters affect you more deeply. If you are a horror fan, it would be sinful not to watch it.