History YMMV / TheHaunting1963

* SparedByTheAdaptation: Albeit only in the most morbid sense. The final line of the book - "whatever walked there, walked alone" - echoes the opening chapter, and suggests that far from "coming home" Eleanor has simply been goaded into destroying herself (Also suggested by the way Hill House sadistically breaks its possession of her in the last few seconds of her life, just long enough for her to experience terror and futility in her final moments). The film takes a slightly more nuanced approach, with Hill House attempting to influence her right up to the end, injecting a note of selflessness into her demise (as it was partly motivated by swerving to avoid Mrs Markway), and also implying that she has achieved some kind of afterlife within Hill House by altering the last line to "we who walk here, walk alone."

* AmbiguousDisorder: Nell is almost painfully desperate just to belong somewhere, and seems to have pervasive morbid thoughts (she sleeps on her left side because she heard it wears out the heart faster). Her emotional state is also rather unstable, as she jumps from being totally petrified of the house to feeling at peace there.

* AdaptationalAttractiveness: Mrs Dudley, described in the book as a "sour old beldame with a face of curds", is played in this version by the rather young and attractive (though inordinately creepy) Rosalie Crutchley.
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: While it is hard to gauge Theo's character too reliably in the book (as we see her almost entirely though Nell's POV, and her feelings towards her change from scene to scene), and while she definitely retains her book counterpart's catty side, the extra touches of motivation given to her in the film make most of her actions decidedly sympathetic. This is particularly emphasised when it is revealed that she knew beforehand that Dr Markway was married (and hence her apparent jealousy towards Nell and Markway was actually a combination of concern for the former, and disapproval of the latter's gallantry towards a vulnerable single woman). She is also quick to suggest Nell leaves Hill House (which Nell reacts to as "picking on" her, but comes across as sincere concern), and after the climactic paranormal disturbance and Mrs Markway's disappearance, she determines to leave Hill House herself and take Nell with her - she makes no such offer in the book. The fact that she remains so concerned for Nell after having encountered a level of malice from her (including overt homophobia) that the novel's Theo never endured is also much to her credit.