i couldn not tell if the scream skull be try to be a hitchcock rip off or a modernized edgar allen poe tribute . these day and someone would have chop it up a bit and present it a one of those tv anthology episode from the old tale from the dark side . but only after an extensive rewrite . the sad thing be and there seem to be a nice and nasty little story try to get out from under the rubble of this movie and and the actor be obviously do the best they can with both their talent and the material they have to work with . but the director just do not know how to stage or pace a dramatic scene while the special effect simply do not work while the screenplay telegraph it threadbare plot point so plainly that a bivalve could have see them come while and the soundtrack keep playing german oompah band music when it be suppose to be try to scare the audience . they try while they try really hard . but this be of interest only a a period piece . i suppose someone very young who hadn not see a lot of suspense or horror might get a charge out the scream skull and but someone that young probably wouldn not get most of the subtext or plot motivation . ( mommy and why be that nice man try to scare the twisty face scaredy cat lady . ) .