Skeleton Key Review

'The Skeleton Key' is chock full of spooky atmosphere and never resorts to gore to provide thrills.

Kate Hudson plays a private nurse hired by the family lawyer to care for a dying man in a decaying, Southern, Gothic mansion set in Louisiana. Once there, she finds that superstition is alive and well in that house and she grows increasingly curious about it's past occupants.

This intense curiosity is the one jarring note in an otherwise interesting thriller. Kate Hudson's character is irritating. Quite a spunky heroine but a horrible employee. A private nurse that immediately ignores house rules and secretly roots through every nook and cranny isn't exactly an ideal employee! She's sullen and incredibly nosy, even extending this nosiness to entering stranger's homes uninvited! (Bad idea in the bayou!). It's hard to like her.

Still, the heavy, Gothic atmosphere and unusual plot make this movie worth seeing. The story is very interesting and you do find yourself wondering what will happen next. Gena Rowlands (as the wife of the sick man) is outstanding and overall, 'The Skeleton Key' is a good movie with a great plot twist.