13 Brilliant Plot Twists That Couldn't Quite Save Terrible Movies
2. The Skeleton Key - Caroline Was Groomed To Be Mama Cecile’s New Host
The Twist: Papa Justify and Mama Cecile, two hoodoo-practicing slaves, transferred their souls into their house’s two children before dying. Years later, Caroline (Kate Hudson) has been tasked with taking care of the catatonic Benjamin (John Hurt) in the same house.
After becoming suspicious of his wife, Violet (Gena Rowlands), she confides in Luke (Peter Sarsgaard). He then reveals himself to be the current host of Papa Justify, who had, until recently, been inhabiting Benjamin.
Caroline’s entire stay had been a ploy to get her to believe in hoodoo. Spells can only work on someone who believes in them, at which point, Violet, really Mama Cecile, transfers into her body.
Why It Almost Saved The Movie: Despite creating a strong and unique atmosphere of hoodoo magic, the film never delivered on the scares it promised. The twist finally resulted in some real, magical terror towards Caroline but at that point there hadn’t been enough to justify us sticking around to get there.
That's a major shame, because the twist really does come as a shock and completely re-contextualizes the horrors of the movie.