Ghost Story

I really literally stumbled on this movie last night, hadn't really planned on even mentioning it, but I did think about whether or not I liked it or not. I did decide I plan to read the Straub novel so I can seek some answers that puzzled me about the movie. Sure, I get the whole scenario involving a tragedy from the past never truly leaving those involved, the ghost soon returning to get her revenge (or could it just be a ghoul called guilt, a spectre t hat remains even if a secret is kept for decades). What puzzled me was how she took a form with beautiful flesh, having sexual intercourse with the sons of one she plans to kill (and succeeds). It was kind of strange to see, for me personally, Fred Astaire in a movie featuring steamy sex between Krige and Wasson (not to mention, Krige nude for portions of the film). While old pros like Melvyn Douglas, Douglas Fairbanks Jr, and John Houseman bring some name recognition to the film, I think it was easy to see that Astaire's presence will probably be why those who normally wouldn't watch something like Ghost Story might curiously give it a viewing. Houseman has one of those "ghost stories told in a spooky tone in the dark, lit by a fireplace" at the beginning to kind of set the mood, but it has, I guess you call them passages, that tells us how Krige is involved not just with those responsible for her demise, but intimately with a son of them.

My favorite scene has Krige naked in a tub with Wasson, both seemingly jovial after a passionate sexual encounter, when she's suddenly a different person after dipping under the water--fans of Tamara from The Ring might get why this scene packs a unique wallop. I was spellbound by Krige--she's just so compelling, particularly to me when she seems lost to something malevolent. It was as if she realized after a bit of happiness with Wasson, that she was not mortal, the immersion underwater a reminder of why she wasn't truly alive, and the intense desire to marry and meet his father places her back on course for that revenge I mentioned earlier on.