House (1986) New World/Comedy-Horror RT: 93 minutes Rated R (language, creature violence) Director: Steve Miner Screenplay: Ethan Wiley Music: Harry Manfredini Cinematography: Mac Ahlberg Release date: February 28, 1986 (US) Cast: William Katt, George Wendt, Richard Moll, Kay Lenz, Mary Stavin, Michael Ensign, Susan French, Erik and Mark Silver, Dwier Brown, Mindy Sterling, Alan Autry, Steven Williams, Ronn Carroll. Box Office: $19.4 million (US)
Rating: ** ½
The comedy-horror House marks a Friday the 13th reunion of sorts. It reunites producer Sean S. Cunningham, director Steve Miner, composer Harry Manfredini and Ronn Carroll who played the cop at Alice’s bedside at the end of the first movie. He plays (big surprise!) another cop. The only one missing is Adrienne King.
I have to admit I didn’t much care for House when I first saw it. I went to see it late one Sunday afternoon after I finished my shift at the ACME. It wasn’t so much the F13 connection that attracted me than it was the studio that distributed it. I always made an effort to see everything released by New World Pictures. It didn’t matter how crappy the picture turned out to be. I enjoy low budget exploitation flicks like House. How low budget is it? The flashback scenes set in the Vietnamese jungle look like they were shot in the woods behind somebody’s house. The creature effects are shamelessly cheesy. The cast is comprised by B and C-listers. Need I continue?
In any event, the movie’s unevenness made it difficult to know how to take it. It’s too goofy to be scary and the evil being that the protagonist fights makes it too dark to laugh at. Over the years, I’ve developed an appreciation for House. I came to realize that its flaws are part of its charm and appeal. It’s a bad movie, but it’s the fun kind that’s not too painful to watch.
In case you can’t tell by the title, House is about a haunted house. It belongs to an elderly woman (French, Somewhere in Time) who hangs herself in the movie’s opening scene. Her nephew, horror writer Roger Cobb (Katt, Carrie), inherits the place and decides to move in temporarily. Could it be because it’s the scene of his young son’s disappearance the year before?
The tragedy affected both his marriage and career. He’s divorced from his TV actress wife Sandy (Lenz, Death Wish 4) and hasn’t written a new book since the disappearance. Cobb plans to write a novel based on his experiences while fighting in Vietnam, an idea that his publisher and fans aren’t crazy about. Strange things start to happen almost immediately after he moves in. Strange creatures appear, garden tools fly around trying to kill him, those sorts of things. It soon becomes apparent it’s all connected to something that happened to him during the war, something involving his buddy Big Ben (Moll, Night Court).
My first impression of House is that it’s an ideal choice for a preteen’s first R-rated horror flick. It’s not too gory and only moderately scary. The film’s light-hearted tone makes it easy for 12YOs to handle. It’s amusing at times. I defy you not to laugh at how fake the monsters look, especially the little hag that takes the form of Cobb’s ex-wife. There’s a funny gag about the creature’s severed hand that attaches itself to a little boy that Cobb is babysitting for his attractive neighbor Tanya (Stavin, Howling V). George Wendt (Norm from Cheers) plays Harold, a nosy neighbor who proves useless in a paranormal crisis. His character is fairly obnoxious, but the actor brings his A-game to the role, so why knock it?
Another sign that House is a low budget job is the soundtrack. The two songs heard on the soundtrack- “You’re No Good” and “Dedicated to the One I Love”- are covered by other singers. I can only surmise the makers couldn’t afford the rights to the original songs. However, Manfredini’s score is very good. It’s an ideal fit for this movie.
The cast does a good job as well. Moll makes a great scary villain. The makeup artists did a stellar job on him. Katt isn’t all that bad a leading man. The storyline is pretty good thanks to a competent script from Ethan Wiley. It’s competently shot and edited. Its biggest problem, like I said, is its tonal imbalance. I’m willing to overlook that because the movie is so much fun. It’s most definitely campy, but that’s obviously what Miner was going for. It makes for a more enjoyable flick. I’d say that this House is worth visiting.
