Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘The House on Pine Street’

Written by Scott Edwards

​Not being in control of the situation is something that many of us do not enjoy. While at your job, you have to do what your boss is directing you to do, or you will be looking for a new job. I like to compare this to why I don’t like to fly, not being able to see what is happening outside, much less do anything about it makes me wary about the situation. I like to be in charge of what I am doing and if it appears that something bad is about to happen, I would rather have the choices being made by me and not a stranger. I don’t know if this makes me a control freak or not, as there are plenty of other times that I will allow someone else to make the decisions, especially when it comes to what is for dinner.
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Moving into her new home, Jennifer is not one bit happy about the situation, but she will have to come to terms with what her mother wants for her. Being able to get the house for a great price and finding Jennifer’s husband, Luke, a good job, the expecting couple should be living on cloud nine. But there is something about this house that is not sitting well with Jennifer and while she is not able to put her finger on it, one of her mother’s friends is able to when he detects a strange energy roaming the halls.

After their housewarming comes to an end, Jennifer needs to use the rest room, but it is occupied by someone that she has never seen before. Asking Luke if there is anyone still in the house, he is shocked because everyone left hours ago. Heading back into the restroom to see that there was nobody there, Jennifer believes that she is losing her mind. While Luke is off at work, Jennifer starts to notice strange things happening all around her, as boxes move on their own and the doors continue to slam when there is nobody shutting them. Telling Luke about these accounts, he dismisses them as Jennifer losing her mind as well, since she had a hiccup in her pregnancy that almost cost them the child.

But Jennifer is convinced that she is not going crazy and when investigating one of the slamming doors, she gets trapped in her room with something not of this world. As the ‘something’ lives in her bedroom closet, she is not able to escape it, and if she tries to lock it in, the door comes off the hinges. Needing some sort of help, Jennifer contacts Walter, a doctor and someone that can feel ghosts to help out, but after his investigation around the house, he is not able to give Jennifer any definitive answers on what is happening. Being upset that the old man has wasted her time, Jennifer shows her disappointment, and the house comes alive as well. Not being able to stop the pregnant woman from her rant, Walter delivers the news to her mother who will have to keep a closer eye on her daughter than she ever expected. With nobody believing that the house is haunted, Jennifer is left on her own to figure out what is happening around her and why she is the only one that is willing to admit that there is something wrong.

I will admit that I expected a ghost story here, but it was much more than that. Following Jennifer as she is dealing with her own issues of being pregnant and not liking her situation, you get to see the world turn against her. I was shocked about the distrust that her mother and even husband put towards her as she complained about the house and what was happening. One thing I have learned over my years is never to disagree with a pregnant woman and the opposite was shown here. I wish there was a little more about Jennifer’s past to show how and why nobody was willing to listen to her throughout the movie, I hate to say it, I needed a flashback. With a creepy house, minimal renovations, a disagreeing couple, an overbearing mother and plenty of strange events that cannot be explained, I liked the explanation at the end about what was happening, and even one of the evils was removed from Jennifer’s life. Stay Scared.

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