Eleanor Vance quotes from The Haunting (1999)

Have you ever kept something for yourself because you were afraid?

Theo

All the time.

I set dinner on the dining room sideboard at 6:00. Breakfast is ready at 9:00. I don't stay after dinner. Not after it begins to get dark. We live in town, nine miles.. So there won't be anyone around if you need help...

We couldn't even hear you.

No one could. No one lives any nearer than town...

No one will come any nearer than that.

In the night...

In the dark.

Come live with us, Nell; you have no idea how hard it is out there.

No, Jane. You have no idea how hard it was in here.

Theo

Hi. Don't worry, I'm not an obsessive packer. It's just a cheap and exploitative way of making new friends. I'm Theo.

Eleanor. But everybody calls me Nell.

Theo

Well, "Everybody Calls Me Nell". Don't you love it here? It's like Charles Foster Kane meets the Munsters.

Theo

Isn't it based on the Gates of Hell, by Rodin?

Well, it's not just hell. You see the children, they're reaching up for heaven. But their souls are trapped in Purgatory. And these are the demons... who can hold onto your soul for as long as they want.

Theo

Did you study art?

No, I studied Purgatory. I was there once for 11 years. It's when your soul is caught between the living and the dead.

Why do you need so many chains?

That's a good question. What is it about fences? Sometimes the people on either side of the fence see a lock chain, they feel a little more comforted. Why do you suppose that is?

Help us... help us...

I'm here... I'm here... I'm coming to you, I'm coming to you...