Nell Vance (Lili Taylor), Theo (Catherine Zeta-Jones) and Luke Sanderson (Owen Wilson) are asked to come to Hill House, a house with a reputation for evil. He is doing a sleep study and wants them as subjects. His subject is really the house and it's history. Each of his guests have a special talent. While they are there the house lives up to its reputation and focuses on Nell. The house itself is full of traps and tricks, and terrorizes them. Nell figures out the reason the house is haunted and now the house doesn't want her to leave, and goes to any lengths to prevent her from doing so.