Redundant and unnecessary.

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

The acting in this movie is really good.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

A recently institutionalized woman (Zohra Lampert) has bizarre experiences after moving into a supposedly haunted country farmhouse and fears she may be losing her sanity once again.In 2006, the Chicago Film Critics Association pronounced "Let's Scare Jessica to Death" the 87th scariest film ever made. In the 2010s, Time Out conducted a poll with several authors, directors, actors and critics who have worked within the horror genre to vote for their top horror films. "Jessica" placed at number 86 on their top 100 list. And in 2016, Rue Morgue magazine gave the film a cover story with in-depth coverage from Kim Newman and an extensive interview with director John Hancock.This being said, I figure it was high time I saw it for myself. And it really is a great film. Some aspects really suggest a late 60s or early 70s aesthetic (the impromptu jam session in particular) but this does not hurt the aging of the film in any way. In fact, it sort of helps put it in an older time, as there is something about the setting that suggests an era even earlier then the time of filming.The scares are achieved by a slower building of tension and an atmosphere of dread. We don't have a lot of blood and guts (though there is some), and the scares aren't generally cheap "jump" or "bus" scares.Does a good version exist? The one I saw was good, but a bit rough. Warner Archive does not seem to put in much effort to clean up their films.

Released in 1971, "Let's Scare Jessica to Death" chronicles events after the title character (Zohra Lampert) gets out of a mental institution and moves into an old house on coastal Connecticut with her husband (Barton Heyman) and a friend (Kevin O'Connor). There they discover a hippie-like squatter named Emily (Mariclare Costello) whom they eventually invite to stay because they all get along. Jessica starts to hear voices as they catch wind of rumors of a drowning victim from 90 years earlier who's now a ghost or maybe even a vampire. Are the increasingly crazy happenings real or all in Jessica's mind? This is a realistic mystery/horror movie in the mold of 1967's "The Shuttered Room" and 1962's "Carnival of Souls." I mean 'realistic' in the sense that the tone is believable. It's a low-key, haunting slow-burner, so if you want over-the-top, cartoony horror, look elsewhere.Zohra Lampert is effective as the mentally unstable protagonist. The way the movie constantly looks into her thought-life and the uncertainties thereof is reminiscent of 1968's "Rachel, Rachel." The theme is the hypnotic power of a woman, in this case a potentially evil woman. Reflect on Jessica's situation at the end. If she dares to speak out, who would believe her story? The drowning victim from the 19th century was named Abigail. I bet this was where King Diamond got the name for his notable 1987 horror-metal concept album.The movie runs 98 minutes and was in Connecticut, USA (Essex, Chester, East Haddam & Old Saybrook).GRADE: B

Dear Horror Movie fans,you guys are the most low expectation fans of any genre. Just shoot the film in some remote island. Add some weird tuneless music. Mix the sound of wind blowing into the audio track. Some weird camera angles. Cheesy acting by the most unremarkable actors. Anything goes as long as it is a horror film. Most of you would rate it at least a 6/10.Let's Scare Jessica to Death did have an interesting protagonist played by a pretty good actress (Zohra Lampert). The inner thoughts of a sad and mentally ill woman as her husband and his friend get attracted to the strange woman at the island home they are staying in is the film's premise. The plot had a lot of scope. But except for one joke about a cake attacking Britain, nothing of interest is said between the four characters. There is no tension between them and nothing really happens. The ending is such a letdown. It reminded me of Last House on the Left. Except for one scary scene at the beginning, the film is simply dull. Just bad actors mouthing uninspired lines.I know some of you are going to call me an Ironman fan or a mobile phone addict. Just admit that there are very few genuinely good horror films. Do not list movies like Let's Scare Jessica to Death along with the likes of The Exorcist and The Shining. Please stop wasting my time, alright?Best Regards, Pimpin.(4/10)

This was a disappointment. I found this movie when I was looking for "haunted house" movies, but LSJTD does not follow that classic, well tried-out formula at all. It is not scary in the "good and pure" way, that makes you shiver with fear and delight mixed. Instead it is scary in a black, unpleasant, disturbing way. You feel so sorry for Jessica, the vulnerable main character, and afterwards you feel depressed.What made me most disturbed, was in fact not the supernatural part of it, which felt mostly silly. But the adultery aspect. Because there are a lot of women like Emily in reality, without them being vampires in the literal sense of the word. Bad morals and no conscience about stealing someone else's husband, is enough for them to bring great havoc to everybody, and destroy another woman's life for ever...What more is there to say about LSJTD..? Maybe that it was very "seventish", complete with the "green wave", and long-haired women in floating dresses and unruly-haired men... the 70:s was a hairy period! :-) All-in-all this movie was a little clumsily made. A little amateurish. I am not impressed!