Stephen King is a big fan of Netflix’s new show The Haunting of Hill House.
Even though it was only released on Friday, The Haunting of Hill House has already attracted big praise from critics, with a 90% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, as well as has been hailed by fans as an even better show than American Horror Story.
And now the show has won the praise of author Stephen King who has described the series as “close to a work of genius” on Twitter.
“I don’t usually care for this kind of revisionism, but this is great,” King wrote on the social media site. “Close to a work of genius, really. I think Shirley Jackson would approve, but who knows for sure.”
THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE, revised and remodeled by Mike Flanagan. I don't usually care for this kind of revisionism, but this is great. Close to a work of genius, really. I think Shirley Jackson would approve, but who knows for sure.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) October 17, 2018
Shirley Jackson is, of course, the author of the novel that Mike Flanagan has adapted into the show. Despite being a horror in parts, in many ways it is simply a a straight-up drama in the ways that it deals with issues like grief, loss, addiction and despair.
In their review, Variety said that it is “a horror series that doesn’t immediately make a case for itself; like the best of the genre, it’s slowly insinuating, building in power as it tells a story of repressed trauma and family discord”.
The Hollywood Reporter stated that the show is “scary as hell and possessed of enough character-centric nuance to carry viewers through to the end,” while TV Guide said “it’s as though Flanagan has taken Jackson’s original work, shattered it and then rearranged the pieces to create a completely original, but equally brilliant tale.”
If you haven’t seen it, watch a trailer for it here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9OzG53VwIk
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