Dark Water

A recently separated woman (Jennifer Connelly) moves with her small daughter (Ariel Gade) into a seedy New York housing project. Soon, strange things seem to be happening in the flat upstairs—supernatural events, perhaps, or delusions brought on by the woman’s own troubled childhood. Tensely directed by Walter Salles and incisively written by Rafael Yglesias, with first-rate performances from an excellent cast (not only Connelly, but also John C. Reilly, Pete Postlethwaite, Tim Roth, Dougray Scott and Camryn Manheim, among others), the film is gripping from start to finish. But it’s also relentlessly grim, with a total downer of an ending that leaves the taste of ashes in your mouth. And, after all, it’s only a ghost story; what’s the fun in that if the chills aren’t delicious?