What Lies Beneath (2000)

The wife of a university research scientist believes that her lakeside Vermont home is haunted by a ghost - or that she is losing her mind.

Director:

Robert Zemeckis

Writers:

Clark Gregg (screenplay), Sarah Kernochan (story)

Stars:

Harrison Ford, Michelle Pfeiffer, Katharine Towne

5 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michelle Pfeiffer	...	Claire Spencer
Katharine Towne	...	Caitlin Spencer
Miranda Otto	...	Mary Feur
James Remar	...	Warren Feur
Harrison Ford	...	Norman Spencer
Victoria Bidewell	...	Beatrice
Diana Scarwid	...	Jody
Dennison Samaroo	...	PhD Student #1
Jennifer Tung	...	PhD Student #2
Eliott Goretsky	...	Teddy
Rachel Singer	...	PhD Student #3
Daniel Zelman	...	PhD Student #4
Ray Baker	...	Dr. Stan Powell
Wendy Crewson	...	Elena
Amber Valletta	...	Madison Elizabeth Frank

Storyline

Norman Spencer, a university research scientist, is growing more and more concerned about his wife, Claire, a retired concert cellist who a year ago was involved in a serious auto accident, and who has just sent off her daughter Caitlin (Norman's stepdaughter) to college. Now, Claire reports hearing voices and witnessing eerie occurrences in and around their lakeside Vermont home, including seeing the face of a young woman reflected in water. An increasingly frightened Claire thinks the phenomena have something to do with the couple living next door, especially since the wife has disappeared without apparent explanation. At her husband's urging, Claire starts to see a therapist; she tells him she thinks the house is being haunted by a ghost. His advice? Try to make contact. Enlisting the help of her best friend, Jody, and a ouija board, Claire seeks to find out the truth of What Lies Beneath.

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Plot Keywords:

hitchcockian | death by drowning | small village | pick up truck | entity | 

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Taglines:

They have the perfect marriage and the perfect house, until she found out what was wrong.

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Genres:

Drama | Fantasy | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for terror/violence, sensuality and brief language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 July 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Revelaciones

Filming Locations:

Burlington, Vermont, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$100,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$29,702,959, 23 July 2000, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$155,464,351

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$291,420,351

Company Credits

Production Co:

DreamWorks,Twentieth Century Fox,ImageMovers

Technical Specs

Runtime:

130 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Michelle Pfeiffer and Wendy Crewson previously both starred in "To Gillian On Her 37th Birthday."

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Goofs

When Claire's friend visits her early in the movie, she brings her a pouch of "Kombucha mushroom tea". Kombucha has been used in Europe for centuries, and gained popularity in the U.S. in the 1980s. It's black tea semi-fermented by the kibosh fungus, which floats on the top of the tea, growing thicker as it eats the tannins in the tea and the sugar that you add, producing the distinct "zingy" taste of kibosh after 2 to 4 weeks. In the movie, it's portrayed as a simple dry tea, not a disc-shaped commensal colony of bacteria and yeast. that must be kept alive.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Claire Spencer: Good morning, Beauty. Let's go or we'll never leave on time.
Caitlin Spencer: I'm totally ready.
Claire Spencer: Come on. I'll make you some waffles.

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Crazy Credits

When the movie title first appears on screen, the word 'Lies' appears just before the rest of the title.

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Connections

Referenced in Game k n b?: Episode dated 29 November 2006 (2006)

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Soundtracks

The Four Seasons: Autumn
Composed by Antonio Vivaldi

User Reviews

Surprisingly good and creepy horror/mystery.

When I went to the cinema to watch this movie,I expected it to be another big-budget Hollywood garbage.After the seance I was pleasantly surprised.I saw "Scream 3" some days ago and that movie wasn't nowhere near as scary as "What Lies Beneath".Great performances by Michelle Pfeiffer(she looks really gorgeous in this one)and Harrison Ford.The climax is absolutely terrifying(especially the bathtub sequence).Plenty of suspense and shocks,wonderful atmosphere of dread and fear.Finally after never-ending strain of lame slasher flicks a truly suspenseful movie.Check it out if you dare.Highly recommended.