An Adaptation of Henry James's "Turn of the Screw"

Kaleidoscope's latest is on Vertigo Entertainment's, Universal's, & Amblin Entertainment's production of "The Turning".  Directed by Floria Sigismondi, the movie stars Mackenzie Davis, Finn Wolfhard, Brooklynn Prince, Barbara Marten, & Joely Richardson.  Rated 'PG-13', it has a running time of 1 hr., 34 min.

The exposition depicts the live-in tutor, Miss Jessel of Fairchild Estate, frantically running from the house.  As she reaches the estate's gate, she jumps out of her car to open it, is attacked by a disheveled man, & is apparently killed.  Transition to Kate (Davis), a teacher who is leaving her job to take over the position that Miss Jessel had--becoming a live-in tutor for Flora (Prince).  Before going to the estate, Kate visits her mother, Darla (Richardson) who lives in a mental institution due to her numerous delusions.  Soon thereafter, Kate arrives at Fairchild & meets the estate's caretaker Mrs. Grose (Marten).  Grose tells Kate that Flora's parents died in an auto accident & that Flora is a 'special case' who must be treated accordingly.  Kate soon meets Flora.  In turn, Flora gives Kate a tour of the estate's grounds (ominously, except for the house's east wing) & expresses her hope that Kate will not leave as Miss Jessel did; Kate promises that she will not.  That night, there is a noise in the east wing which turns out was created by Flora's brother Miles (Wolfhard, who has mysteriously returned early from his boarding school).  Act I ends as Kate finds out the real reason as to why Miles has returned.

Despite the rich literary heritage of Henry James's novella (upon which the movie is based), director Sigismondi has fashioned a fairly boring, sometimes confusing adaptation that never quite rises above the mundane. This is Sigismondi's 2nd feature effort--her prior work has been in episodic television & music video shorts--and her lack of experience in this arena shows.  Scenes are tepidly presented; motivations are unclear (Carey & Chad Hayes's screenplay can take much of the blame here); except for the exposition, editing is haphazard, at times, which leads to the film's muddiness; and other continuity problems.  The screenplay's ending just occurs; the viewer is left wondering about several possibilities, all of which are unsatisfactory.  One hearkens back to 1963's "The Birds", for instance, which also had an ambiguous ending.  However, Hitchcock's artistry throughout the movie allowed for that ending to be acceptable.  Here, the overall feeling is of the movie being amateurish.  One example is a sinister character who mysteriously reappears throughout the film without a satisfactory explanation.  The acting is fine with the little that they have to do.  Davis ("Halt & Catch Fire", "Terminator: Dark Fate") looks sufficiently confused & fearful throughout.  Wolfhard continues to expand his repertoire beyond his roles in "Stranger Things" & the 2 "It" movies.  Prince is above average as a child who seeks to expand her environment beyond the estate but is limited by others around her & herself.  Richardson is wasted in a diminutive role which merely serves as a plot device.  Marten is too bland as the estate's caretaker; she seems to be waiting for a more expanded role in a different film.  The score, cinematography, editing, etc. are average & routine.

I give "The Turning" 5 out of 10 nuggets.  It is a mediocre, pedestrian effort that is not worth one's time.  If you wish to see it at all, wait for it to appear on one of the streaming or cable services.