Sunday, October 26, 2014

DVD Review - The House of the Devil



House of the Devil
Director: Ti West
Starring: Jocelin Donahue, Tom Noonan, Mary Woronov, Greta Gerwig, Dee Wallace
Studio: Dark Sky Films
Releae Date: February 2, 2010
ASIN: B002OVO18A
Running Time: 95 minutes
Rated: R
Buy Link: Amazon

Review:

Like I have already said before this month, I do consider myself a big horror fan, but there are some movies that just slip by my radar, which includes the 2009 horror film The House of the Devil. I would have never known that the movie even existed if I didn't watch the horror film The Innkeepers from same director Ti West, which I loved watching. After doing a quick Google search I learned about The House of the Devil and I bought the DVD off of eBay earlier this year.

The House of the Devil centers on Samantha Hughes (played by Jocelin Donahue), a college student in dire need of cash for a deposit on her first apartment. She takes a babysitting job for Mr. Ulman (played by Tom Noonan) and his wife (played by Mary Woronov) without even meeting them. Her friend, Megan (played by Greta Gerwig), drive her to the Ulman's house and leaves her there, where she quickly learns that she isn't babysitting a kid, but instead she is babysitting Ulman's sick mother. She tries to talk herself out of the job, but then Ulman offers her $400 and she gladly accepts.


There isn't much for her to do there, except for listening to her Walkman while she explores the old house. After ordering a nasty pizza, she stumbles upon a few photos that suggests that Ulman and his wife aren't the owners of the house. After feeling a bit ill, she starts to wonder if the pizza she ate was drugged with something. She eventually passes out and wakes up to an unimaginable horror that may cost her her life.



As it turns out The House of the Devil is a throwback to the slasher, haunted house and cult films from the '70s and '80s, which the film here is set in the 1980s and was shot in 16mm film, giving it a retro feel to it. After reading dozens of positive reviews about it, I went into the movie with high expectations and I wasn't disappointed. Unlike the recent horror flicks that uses fast-pacing and over the top gore, this film is a slow-burner and builds up the suspense. For most of the movie the heroine is alone in the house, but never once did I get bored. Ti West is one of the most original directors out there. Overall, The House of the Devil is an intense horror film that should not be missed.


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