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Emily Osment, Cody Linley, Brittany Curran, Tobin Bell, Alex Winzenread ... see more see more... , Michelle Duffy , John Hawkinson

When thirteen year-old goth girl named Cassie (Emily Osment) moves into a new neighborhood with her family and starts pulling spooky pranks on the popular kids, the appearance of a mysterious books fi... read more read more...nds events taking a truly terrifying turn. Cassie isn't comfortable in her new surroundings, and feels rejected by her new classmates. Frustrated, she launches a tireless campaign to frighten the wits out of the entire student body as well as her younger brother Max (Alex Winzenread). With Halloween just twenty-four hours away, Cassie discovers an odd little book entitled "The Evil Thing." Despite the warning that implores owners never to read the book aloud, Max demands to hear the story and as a result, Cassie begins reading. Curiously, the story begins in the darkened woods behind their home, and soon introduces a mysterious stranger who may alter the course of the young sibling's lives. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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74% liked it

5,268 ratings

PG, 1 hr. 27 min.

Directed by: Alex Zamm

Release Date: September 4, 2007

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DVD Release Date: September 4, 2007

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Flixster Reviews (563)


  • October 10, 2010
    Pretty awesome Halloween flick! Great effects and creepy storyline make the snottiness of Pricilla be ignored by me. But not by much. It has some flaws but it's still great.
  • November 25, 2009
    The Evil Thing is not real unless you think about it. For 13-year-old Cassie, fitting into a new school and neighborhood isn't easy, but she entertains herself and by playing pranks on the popular kids and her little brother, Max. As Halloween approaches, Cassie's search for scar... read morees leads her to a mysterious Halloween store and an unusual book called The Evil Thing. When Max begs her to read the book to him, Cassie ignores its warning, "Do Not Read Aloud", and the spooky adventure really begins.

    Directed by Alex Zamm, The Haunting Hour Volume One: Don't Think About It features very good acting performances from the following cast:
    1.) Emily Osment (Cassie)
    2.) Cody Linley (Sean)
    3.) Brittany Elizabeth Curran (Priscilla)
    4.) Alex Winzenread (Max)
    5.) Tobin Bell (The Stranger)

    Goosebumps author R.L. Stine brings us the film straight from the horror sub-genre that is scary but family-friendly, but still too scary for the younger children. Here is The Haunting Hour, featuring a goth girl who likes to enjoy the horror stuff...wow, that character really fits into the story background. Although Emily O. comes from the tween-targeted Disney Channel pop culture that I despise, I can say that her acting here is very good while she proves herself to be more popular than her big bro Haley Joel (who saw dead people). If I thought queen bees are only seen in high school movies, then I'd better think again: BEC playing Priscilla totally represents one for junior high, and she's really bratty for a queen bee, you know. The film has good horror fun when our characters go after the monster, and they'll do everything to save everyone's lives before it's too late.
  • April 5, 2008
    I have always loved anything R. L. Stine, so I knew I needed to see this.

    I wasn't at all disappointed with it. If I would have been a few years younger it would be a 5. It's a story about a girl that unleashes an "Evil Thing." that kidnaps people to feed to it's young.

    It ha... read mores a few Disney channel stars and Tobin Bell (the Jigsaw dude) in it, so the cast is awesome. And Emily Osment plays a good goth.

    I'll probably have to buy it.
  • March 16, 2008
    I couldnt wait for this movie to be over with. I watched it because I wanted to see Emily Osmet as a goth
  • January 31, 2008
    Awesome movie!Emily Osment plays a great goth girl,my favorite character in the movie.Cody Linely plays a good character also.A scary movie but appropriate for kids and a good one.
  • November 7, 2007
    Finally saw this film, it was ok, nothing to go tell someone about it. I liked having Tobin Bell in it from Saw, that was a cool thing to do. The graphics, should have been worked on a whole lot more. The horror just lasts for about 15 minutes, and it takes to long to get in the ... read morestory. Would have been a better movie, if it was a drama film of a girl moving to a new town, and she haveing to deal with the hard parts of life, moving somewhere new. Still check it out, I guess, and find out what you think. But there could have been so much more. Emily Osment was also a great actress and her brother was so annoying. Anyways on that little note, it was not everything I was hoping for.
  • November 2, 2007
    sounds cool... it was pretty good. i wouldnt say my favorite.. but its a scary movie for little kids so... im guessing they dont get scared. lol
  • October 12, 2007
    Pretty good movie! I loved the Halloween costumes (creativeness!!), anddd Cassie's lil bro was annoying. Pretty predictable, but still enjoyable :)
  • October 11, 2007
    i love the movie its so cool...emily osment is my favorite charater...she my idol oh how to look gothic...pretty awsome
  • October 8, 2007
    I love the haunting hour!!! Scary movies are the best. I definetly think you should see this fantastic episode!

Critic Reviews


Heather Boerner
December 18, 2010
Heather Boerner, Common Sense Media

Tween-friendly, ad-happy Halloween fright fest. Full Review

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