Beginning with “The Ring” in 2002, there’s been a new trend among Hollywood producers.

They started adapting successful Asian thrillers into American remakes with a new cast and in English.

“The Uninvited” is the latest adaption in this trend. A remake of the 2003 Korean horror movie “A Tale of Two Sisters,” the film tries to remain faithful to the original material’s sense of psychological terror while attempting to appropriately adapt it to an American audience’s appetites.

The film revolves around a girl named Anna (Emily Browning) who returns home from a lengthy stint at a psychiatric hospital following the tragic death of her mother.

Together with her sister Alex (Arielle Kebbel), she tries to unravel the mystery of her mother’s death, the strange ghosts that haunt her and a new stepmother (Elizabeth Banks) who seems hellbent on making Anna’s return home as miserable, and possibly as lethal, as possible.

The initial premise isn’t particularly inviting, or even original, although the connotations of a wicked stepmother are probably different here than they are in Korea. But, as the film goes on, its flawless execution begins to outweigh its flimsy premise.

There are enough plot twists and interesting turns to keep you on your toes, and the movie’s progression is never quite predictable.

The movie is far from cheerful. The setting is a New England beach house. The opening scenes contain disturbing imagery that makes it impossible for either the audience or the characters to feel truly at rest. There is a sense of discomfort that slowly escalates into horror as the film progresses, and the spacious and beautiful house becomes more and more claustrophobic as the film unfolds.

Just when the pacing seems to be boring, or when you’ve had enough of the psychological chess game between stepmother and daughter, the ghosts show up.

Their appearances are infrequent enough that you don’t tire of them, but they’re hardly strangers to the screen, showing up often enough to justify your stay on the edge of the seat.

However, it quickly became clear when Anna will experience one of these ghostly visits, reducing the fright somewhat and leaving the film almost barren of ‘jump-out-of-your-seat’ scares.

Those unfamiliar with the original and superior movie, or those who simply are looking for a good psychological thriller that’ll leave you jumping at shadows for days, could do worse than “The Uninvited.”