The Haunting Of Hill House Review: 7 Ups & 2 Downs

5. The Sparing Use Of Jump Scares

This show is proof perfect of the fact that jump scares aren't an inherently bad thing: it just depends how they're used. Flanagan smartly takes a sparing approach to jolting scares, peppering them throughout the 10 episodes with restraint, such that there's maybe only 1 or 2 per instalment.

The result is that the jumps both feel incredibly earned and don't seem remotely obnoxious: after sitting through 20-30 minutes of dialogue and quiet unease, a quick jump doesn't feel so annoying, and more to the point, it actually provides a genuine fright.

Some might've preferred that the series didn't include jump scares at all, but considering the undeniably pulpy nature of the source novel, it'd probably be a bit of betrayal not to. Flanagan handles them about as well as anyone could, and they never prove even remotely bothersome.