Y’know that classic ghost story by M.R. James–Oh, Whistle and I’ll Come to You, My Lad? The one in which the sheets on the other bed in the room rise up and start to fold and wrinkle themselves into–well, never mind, I don’t want to spoil it for you. Point is, it’s almost certain that that story was inspired by a cat. And in this video, you’ll see how that was possible.
Patty and I wanted to watch a ghost story last night; and, lo and behold, we found a movie treatment of M.R. James’ Oh, Whistle and I’ll Come to You, My Lad, one of the best ghost stories ever written. There’s a 1968 version starring Michael Hordern as the intellectual know-it-all who gets a very rude awakening, but this new one is longer and stars another great actor, John Hurt.
But first we read the viewer comments.
It turns out there’s no ghost in this rendition, and no freakin’ whistle, either. Instead, it’s a story of dementia. All they did was lift the title–not honest! The story in the movie has nothing to do with the one M.R. James wrote. So we didn’t watch it.
Sorry, but dementia is very much wanting as a source of entertainment, especially when it’s eating up certain members of your family. My brother-in-law, Ray, has it: has it bad. Because it’s not possible to get his permission to divulge any of the details, all I can say is that he needs our prayers. I mean, he really needs them, and I ask you to join me in offering prayer on his behalf. Please, Lord, in Jesus’ name, do something to help him!
I know you can’t copyright a title, but this goes beyond just “based on” and is a highly blameworthy attempt to trick the audience.
Meanwhile, we thank you for your prayers.