The Innkeepers 4K Review (Second Sight Films)

The Innkeepers is a 2011 horror film written, edited, produced, and directed by TI West (X, Pearl, MaXXXine, The Sacrament, V/H/S, The House of the Devil, and Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever). It was produced by film maker Larry Fessenden (Blackout, Depraved, The Ranger, Darling, Chilling Visions, Night of the Wolf, Birth of the Living Dead, Night Moves, Stake Land, The House of the Devil, I Sell the Dead, Habit, and Psychopaths). The budget was $750,000 and it grossed $1,178,831 worldwide at the box office!!!! Two employees Claire (played by: Sara Paxton from The Last House on the Left, Weapons, Barbarian, Static, Shark Night, and Cheap Thrills) and Luke (played by: Pat Healy from Cheap Thrills, Killers of the Flower Moon, Club Dread, Dinner in America, Starry Eyes, Ghost World, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, and Magnolia) at a rundown inn are very desperate to prove the building is actually haunted before it gets closed down for good. Unfortunately their dark ambitions become an awful reality, they may just get what they wished for after staying there for their last few shifts!!!! TI West is one of most talented and best directors in the horror genre right now. All of his work is very unique and different from each other which what makes his movies so interesting over the years. He tries to do a little bit of everything when it comes to cinema. The Innkeepers is well written and character driven. It takes it’s sweet time for it’s development and build it’s creepy atmosphere but it’s worth your patience. Both Sara Paxton as Claire and Pat Healy as Luke are into the paranormal. They know something is wrong with their work location and they try to investigate it’s past before it’s shut down. They both have to stay there for the last few nights as they continue to swap their shifts. Each character has a different experience so it makes you wonder. As time runs out, everything gets much weirder and more dangerous. Their chemistry is top notch and it elevates this independent horror production. There’s not a bad performance in The Innkeepers, everyone is on point for this supernatural and ghost story. The rest of the supporting cast includes Kelly McGillis (Top Gun), Brenda Cooney (Satan Hates You), John Speredakos (Wendigo), Alison Bartlett (Masters of Horror), and Jake Ryan (Inside Llewyn Davis). It’s a very small cast and all of the roles feel a little more organic than usual. The Innkeepers manages to keep itself tense with plenty of thrills and suspense but at it’s own pace. It’s not filled with non stop jump scares, action, gore, and violence. Don’t expect any crazy special fx either. It’s more psychological than anything and it relies on It’s overall mood. It’s a nice tribute to all of those classic haunted house films from back in the day. It’s a high quality effort that focuses on it’s main characters and the possibilities of what could be lurking around in this place. It slowly builds more and more as it goes on. I personally enjoy slow burns with a payoff so it’s worth it. It still holds up really good after all these years. It’s currently streaming on Prime Video, Plex, and AMC+ if you want to check it out for yourself before making a purchase because I can see why it’s not for everyone but it’s so damn good if it is. RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s discuss this high definition presentation and special features from Second Sight Films! This 2160p (2.39:1) transfer with Dolby Vision and HDR10 is from a brand new 4K restoration. It looks amazing in 4K. TI West always delivers when it comes to the visuals and atmosphere. The Innkeepers is no different with it’s stylish cinematography, sharp production design, and creepy main location that’s basically like it’s own character here. This is a major improvement over the previous blu ray from Dark Sky in the states. It has an English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track on the UHD. The sound design is flawless for this independent horror feature. The audio adds to it’s already dark vibe. All of the dialogue is crystal clear, the tension is elevated, and the music has a huge boost to it. It has English SDH subtitles. It has an “Audio Commentary” with Ti West, Larry Fessenden, Peter Phok, and Graham Reznick. This is more of a technical chat with the production team. It’s scene specific for the most part. It’s very detailed audio track with all of the information shared here. It has an additional “Audio Commentary” with Ti West, Sara Paxton, and Pat Healy. This is more of a fun audio track with the director and the two leads. Don’t get me wrong, it has plenty of information and stories but they seem to enjoy themselves more while revisiting The Innkeepers. Between the two, you will learn so much about this ghost and supernatural effort. It has the 15 minute “A Lasting Memory”. It’s a brand new interview with Ti West. The director chats about the location inspiring this concept while he was shooting another movie at the time. He talks about the cast and crew experiencing weird things while staying there. It was a very fast turnaround writing and putting this one together. It has the 30 minute “Let’s Make This Good”. It’s a brand new exclusive interview with Pat Healy. He chats about how he got familiar with the director. He shares his experience of watching The House of the Devil. He brings up getting the role in this. He goes over some memories from the production. He discusses the inspiration for the Kelly McGillis character for this. He brings up some opportunities it gave him including the legendary Martin Scorsese being a fan of it. It has the 32 minute “Our Dysfunctional World”. It’s a brand new exclusive interview with Larry Fessenden. This is probably my favorite extra here. The film maker and producer chats about how he discovered Ti West after seeing some of his earlier shorts. He talks about the development and process of The Innkeepers. He shows his appreciation for the cast. It has the 9 minute “Living in the Process”. It’s a brand new exclusive interview with Eliot Rockett. The DP shares some of same story as West for The Innkeepers inspiration while filming The House of the Devil. He doesn’t hold back to not getting much attention for his work there. He has plenty to say about it. It has the 8 minute “Cast a Wide Net”. It’s a brand new exclusive interview with Jeff Grace. The composter chats about his music and score for the horror film. It’s a very detailed convo about his work. It has the 14 minute “A Validating Moment”. It’s a brand new exclusive interview with Jacob Jaffke. The line producer chats about how he got involved with The Innkeepers and his overall experience on it. This is better than expected, lots of interesting information is shared here. It has the archive 7 minute “The Innkeepers: Behind the Scenes”. It has various behind the scenes footage. It has some quick interviews while they are making the movie. It has the “Trailer”. This UHD is a excellent upgrade compared to the past home video releases available here. Second Sight adds some really nice exclusives which make this one a must own. It’s also available in a limited edition. This showed edition is available everywhere in the U.K. and select spots in the U.S., CHECK IT OUT!!!!