text: who has seen "an american haunting" and how was it?   i was also at the screening at the arclight theaters and i have to say how bad it really was. it was trying so hard to be the next great american horror film. the music was so redundant and overdone. and yes there were little girls with long black hair again in some scenes. the pov of the spirit is the lamest thing i've ever seen. it's also very redundant. the whole dream/nightmare/memory thing...whatever it was...felt so unnecessary and redundant. there's so much redundancy and boredom to this film. the only reason why i jumped at some parts and many times why i do this in horror movies is because of the loud music. who doesn't jump at sudden bursts of trumpet sounds? and rachel-hurd wood was not that great either. she was much more believable in peter pan. she needed a rougher edge to her character and i think her innocence in real life bleeds through too much in her character. there was also a very awkward scene where she does the whole "twitching-i'm possessed-help me" act and the family is just staring and edited in a way that makes them look so careless. i couldn't help but laugh. her whole twitching thing looked so fake as well. for some reason that moment totally made me picture the director shouting out his commands "scream! shake harder..harder!!" and donald sutherland can not act in this as well. and sissy spacek i feel like just wants money. she hasn't been in anything good since in the bedroom. story's pretty weird. for devil's sake....it's the same director as dungeons and dragons. he was ranting on to a select few of us outside the theater of the plot points and why people did this and that. no one can possibly know that the first viewing. ok..enough of my ranting. i think with a lot of smart editing, and different choices of music placing, this film can be somewhat good.