April 28^th, 2002

"THIS OLD (HAUNTED) HOUSE"

Since we've recently moved "house" as it were here on the internet onto our own domain for this grab bag we decided to focus on people who have also moved into a new house only with way more disastorous results.

Here's three movies that prove, "if the real estate agent is willing to part with it cheap; there's something wrong with it".

Amityville Horror [1979] could be held responsible for starting the slew of "possessed house" movies that were glutting the horror genre along with slasher flicks in the early 80's.

Supposedly based on a "true story" this tells of the Lutz family who buy a house in Amity, California only for all sorts of strange things to happen when it turns out it was the site of a mass murder a year prior and is quite possessed.

If it wasn't for all the memorable moments on hand (the flies on the window, the clogged toilet) and Rod Steiger's hammy turn as the priest called-in to exorcise the house this would just be another dull "haunted house" movie. But since this is considered to be one of the forerunners of its sub-genre it's recommended for that fact.

House [1985] was the start of a tongue-in-cheek series from producer Sean S. Cunningham (Friday The 13th) that stars William Katt as a struggling writer who inherits his aunt's huge Victorian house after she hangs herself.

He thinks it would be the perfect place to try and finish his memoirs about the Vietnam war but the only problem is that the house is infested with all sorts of nasty beasties including the zombie of a war buddy who he blames himself for his death in the jungles of 'Nam.

Take a cast filled with familiar faces and mix in lots of humourous set pieces, decent special effects and a fun sense of humour and you've got yourself an entertaining time from director Steve Miner (who directed Friday The 13th parts 2 and 3).

Drainiac! [1999] is a fun little movie from writer-director Brett Piper that has the typical set-up of having a group of young people going to an old, beaten-up house to rennovate only to fall victim to the demonic forces that dwell there.

Feeling old fashioned and with lots of goofy attempts at comedy, endearingly tacky effects at times and a tongue-in-cheek approach this homage that is entertaining and dopey with Piper having a lot of fun with it all and these cool tentacles that get up to all sorts of nasty things (including a bully who gets it real good).