Will Atenton (Daniel Craig) is a successful publisher who decides to pack it all in and cart himself, his wife (Rachel Weisz) and two girls off to the country to work on his book. They retire to an old knock-about house with a vision to transfer it into their dream home. However, Will soon discovers that the house and the community are hiding a dark past. Just five years ago his house was the scene of the violent murder of an entire family, seemingly at the hands of the father Peter Ward. With faces appearing in the windows and footsteps in the snow it appears Peter is back and he has made this new family his next target.

On first appearance this film seems very Amityville and despite its rather clunky start you do buy into the family unit and Will’s desire to protect them from this mad man. You believe in his frustration and vulnerability as he fails to get help from the police or the truth from his neighbor Ann (Naomi Watts). The film picks up tempo, as Will desperately searches for answers and Peter’s location, discovering horrifying glimpses into how close the maniac is getting to his family. Despite this the introduction and plot progression is rather patchy, that is, until a rather interesting and out of the blue twist. Not wanting too many plot spoilers here, the twist is rather original and surprisingly well executed. Director Jim Sheridin does well here in the film’s topsy-turvy delivery and portrayal of the plunge into madness, doing a great job of transforming the appearance of the house based on the mood of the characters.

Regardless, of this innovative twist, the film lacks substance. Like butter spread on too much toast, the idea is simply not enough to fill the whole film and it quickly becomes unremarkable. The ending feels rushed and underdeveloped as if the director saw the light at the end of the tunnel and decided to bolt straight for it. This is not to say that the film is completely without merit – it has a solid B-movie storyline with some good performances form Craig and Weisz, but at the end of the day it is noting special and will no doubt be forgotten in a couple of weeks.