“Is all that we see or seem but a dream within a dream?” – Edgar Allan Poe

Daniel Farrand ’s 2019 release, The Haunting of Sharon Tate, has some very commendable features, along with some mildly questionable choices. We open on Hilary Duff as Sharon Tate, talking candidly about life, fate and how the two are inextricably connected. She then also describes a horrible dream she had, depicting the Manson murders almost exactly how they happened.

We are then treated to a montage of footage from the real 1969 murder scene, setting a deeply morbid tone for the rest of the film. The rest of our story takes place prior to the murders and follows a heavily pregnant Sharon Tate in her troubled last few days. Tate and the home she shares with famous director, Roman Polanski, are being looked after by three close friends of Tate; Abigail Folger ( Lydia Hearst ), Jay Sebring ( Jonathan Bennett ), and Wojciech Frykowski ( Pawel Szajda ). Tate isn’t entirely happy with Folger and Frykowski’s behavior, as they have been making decisions about the house without asking her, e.g. preparing a nursery for Tate’s unborn baby.

The tension amongst the four living together continues rising as Sharon begins to have nightmares where they all get killed; firmly believing that these nightmares have to mean something. To add to the stress of the situation, the house is being stalked by 4 strangers, two women and two men. The strangers keep delivering tapes to the house, addressed to Terry Melcher, a famous record producer at the time, who was the prior tenant in the house.

In a truly impressive feat, Farrand manages to supply genuine twists and turns into a true story that arguably most people are familiar with. There are a few moments where the viewer is left wondering whether what they just saw was real; harking back to Tate’s discussion earlier about life and fate. If you are a stickler for accuracy and have a decent knowledge of the Tate murders, perhaps stay away from this one. Whilst a lot of the film remains true to life, there are definitely some details that are factually questionable. For instance, Sharon Tate’s sister, Debra Tate, came out after the release of the film and stated that it was a myth that Sharon ever predicted the murders, which does put a slight dampener on the whole thing.

However, if you’re happy to get swept up in the story-telling and morbidity of the whole thing, then absolutely give The Haunting of Sharon Tate a watch. It is beautifully shot, truly emulating the aesthetic of the 60s. Also some excellent music choices, reminiscent of the dark, heart-beat soundtrack of classic 60s horror. The only questionable thing left is the casting choice of Hilary Duff as Sharon Tate; it is apparent that Duff’s talents lie firmly in comedy.