Director Peter Medak passed away on Tuesday, at the age of 88 years old. He had worked in a variety of sub-genres, and worked with many great actors, such as Peter O’Toole and Gary Oldman. But for horror fans, he is known for directing simply one of the best ghost story movies ever made, the 1980 film The Changeling, starring George C. Scott. It creeped me out immensely when I first saw it, and even today still gives me the chills. You’ll never look at an old wheelchair the same way again! Thankfully, because of Severin’s incredibly looking 4K release they did, this film will live on to haunt new viewers for generations to come, and rightly so.

But Medak was able to show the overpowering grief the main character is going through, with the help of a stellar performance by Scott, all inside a classic story of a haunting from a presence that wants to be heard. Without really showing much, other than long panning shots of inside the house, Medak created such an effective and compelling story, that is one that I often revisit. So, for that film alone, I have a lot of respect for him.

Our thoughts go out to his friends and family during this difficult time. Rest in Peace.