Initial Ideas: Film Narrative

The Background

The main character is a female in her late twenties who is unhappy with her life. Ever since experiencing abuse as a child, the relationships in her life have been affected. In order to do some soul-searching, she moves into a new home in the country where she can begin to start her ‘new life’. We learn about the characters background as the narrative progresses.

The Plot

The protagonist moves into an old Victorian house which is located in a quiet and isolated area in the country. As soon as she moves into she begins to realise that she isn’t entirely alone. From hearing voices, to having horrific nightmares, the protagonist believes that she is being haunted by the spirit of a young woman; she learns that the spirit was brutally murdered in the house as the narrative progresses.

She decides to find out about the history of the house and begins by exploring the attic; in there she finds a dusty old record book that contains photographs of lots of young children. Here, she discovers that the house was once a children’s home for orphans in the 1970’s. Among all of the photographs, one photo of a young girl stands out the most, the protagonist recognises the girl from having seen her in her nightmares.

The main character then visits her neighbour, a slightly crazed old lady who lives next door, to confirm her suspicion and find out more. The old lady tells the protagonist that she always knew there was something eerie about the orphanage, that she believed the children were being abused, but that no one believed her.

The main character becomes frightened and erratic, convinced that the ghost of this girl is evil as it continues to torment her, but as the film goes on, she realises that the spirit is trying to communicate something to her. Through this correspondence, the protagonist discovers how and why the girl was murdered so many years ago. The owner of the orphanage was a violent man who abused the children at the home, the girl who had been killed, was one of many, but none of the other children experienced a death so horrific. The girl threatened to go to the police if he continued to cause harm, the man became aggressive and then murdered her.

The main character then realises that she must track down this man, in order to resolve peace for this poor restless soul. She sets out to find him, by using an address that her neighbour had given her, for another orphanage. The anticipation to find him builds up, but to the main characters disappointment, she is informed by the nurses at the home, that he was present for a while, but that he soon made a sudden disappearance.

Eventually, the main character tracks down the man’s home. In this space of time, there is confrontation between the protagonist and the antagonist, in which she reveals that she knows his secret. The antagonist wildly enraged attempts to attack her, but she manages to escape. The protagonist makes it back to her home, knowing that he would be coming after her.

The final death struggle commences within her home, as the protagonists experiences a moment of realisation in which she evolves from a frightened, vulnerable young girl so troubled by her past, into the strong, confident, invisible woman she initially set out to be. She understands that she must defeat this murderer herself, not only to provide resolution for the ghost, but to also put to rest the predicament of her past.

After a vicious game of ‘hide and seek’ between the protagonist and the killer, the ultimate death struggle begins. It will mirror the events of how the ghost of the girl had died, which provides the narrative with a poetic ending. Just as the antagonist attempts to murder the protagonist in the same way, she suddenly has a brutal vision in which she experiences the death of the poor girl so many years ago. She regains strength and it is the antagonist who suffers death. Justice is restored for the ghost of the girl and the protagonist feels as if she has defeated the demons of her past.

The Twist

The last scene will show the protagonist packing up her belongings and loading them into her car. She decides to say farewell to the old lady next door and thank her for her help. As she knocks on the door, a dog walker nearby hears the protagonist knocking on the door and calling the ladies name. She warily approaches the main character and asks her who she is looking for. The protagonist tells her that she is looking for the elderly woman who lives here. The dog-walker replies “I’m sorry but, the lady that lived here died many years ago...” And so the twist is that the donor character (crazy old lady) was in fact a ghost herself!