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House on Haunted Hill

House on Haunted Hill

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Camp Classic, Vincent Price Vehicle
Review: Released in 1958, "House on Haunted Hill" was one of those great vehicle films for Vincent Price. Vincent Price. Now there was a truly great actor. Although he is most credited for being a horror, suspense or mystery film star with his spooky presence and his menacing voice, he has been able to portray various roles- from an average working man, nobility to even an Egyptian task master in "The Ten Commandments" starring Charlton Heston. Primarily doing films in the 50's and 60's, Vincent Price makes a good performance in this film. If anything, you should watch this film for Vincent Price's character.

Price plays an eccentric, murderous millionaire who is hosting a party upon the suggestion of his conniving wife. She is in fact plotting with one of the participants to kill her husband and to get his fortune. Nevertheless, crazy old Vincent Price is also plotting to murder his wife, as he has done his other three wives before. Gathering guests (all who are in need of money) he welcomes them to a "party" in which they must spend the night in the large, haunted mansion to get ten thousand dollars. The house was never really haunted. The gimmicks - from a woman being hanged, to ghostly apparitions to an organ playing and walking skeletonwas all the crafty inventions of Vincent Price. The movie contains dark humor, much suspense and mood. In a time before blood and gore became the norm for horro films, this film relied on building up atmosphere and suspense. The film can be a bit dull at times, and frankly, not very frightening, but for the sake of watching Vincent Price or a classic horror film, it's a good buy. Some unforgettable lines in the film are Vincent Price saying such sordid remarks as "Every husband wishes to kill his wife but the problem is how to go about doing it so that no one would ever suspect he did it" and "It was my wife's idea to have the guests arrive in funeral cars." Loads of horrific fun.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Two stars for Price, not the film
Review: Frederick Loren (Vincent Price) invites five strangers to spend the night in a haunted house...if they can. However, all is not as it seems. Price, as always, is wonderful and adds some much needed class to this substandard outing, which basically consists of the cast wandering from room to room, delivering bad dialogue and reacting hysterically to tired haunted house cliches. Lovers of campy grade-B 50s horror films may feel charitable toward it.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The Master of Suspence and Horror - Vincent Price
Review: Recently, a movie was released that was a remake of this film. It was .... This film, being from the 50's probably doesn't get too many viewers these days, and that's unfortunate. This film is one of around a dozen films starring Vincent Price. These films are what made him famous. His acting ability was renown at the time. He was able to play characters like someone with multiple personality disorder! He could go from an average joe, to a murdering husband in this film.

The film follows a group as they are invited to spend an evening in a haunted mansion, for which they'll all receive a hefty sum of money (for the day). As it turns out, the whole thing is a plot by one of the people in the house to murder one of the others. The suspence is good, as well as the campy 50's blood and gore. The severed human head was my personal favorite.

This film is widescreen, which is how I like it. For those of you with smaller TVs, flip the disk over and watch the full screen version. The audio is Dolby 2.0, and not 5.1. This didn't really bother me, as I didn't expect too much from the audio. The video was obviously transferred from the old reel to reel. Occasionally, you can see some artifacts, but I think they add to the experience.

Anyway, I picked this one up for $.., which I think is a bargain. I'm trying to build a collection of these old horror films, and this one is my first. If you have to pay the full price for this, I would be a bit reluctant. Try to find it below $.. if you can.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: 2.5 Stars as horror, but 5 for a great movie
Review: I'm rating this as a horror flick. Five strangers gather to test their stamina, Price hands each of them delightfully twisted party favors (loaded handguns, delivered in their own tiny coffins), and the spook show begins. Blood drips from the ceiling, zombielike apparitions float through rooms, severed heads and skeletons suddenly appear, and then a guest is found hanging in the stairwell. There are a few good jolts, but this isn't very scary, but it is a heck of alot scarier than the pathetic re-make. It also has a sense of humor. This is one that the whole family will enjoy. Watch it in the dark, and BUY IT now!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Just a fun movie that doesn't take itself too seriously
Review: I cannot imagine this movie without Vincent Price. This is my favorite Price movie actually. Be warned, if you LOVED Resident Evil or the new remake of HOHH, then look elsewhere. This movie isn't visceral or fast enough for you, and the "special effects" are decidedly LOW tech. It's all character interaction, mood and atmosphere; and it actually tries to tell a story. It takes it's time to build, but for those who are still into this gothic genre it's worth it. There's an air of mystery that is well maintained throughout, thus some phenomena (like doorknobs that turn seemingly all by themselves, dripping blood, the ghost getting into a seemingly locked room and etc.) are purposefully never explained. Unlike the remake, this classic original isn't so heavy handed and doesn't take itself so seriously. This classic silky Price movie is just like a ride in the carnival spook show; thus it's not really scary. It's just fun for those of us who actually "get it." To each their own thankfully. I'd hate living in a world where everyone liked what I like. God! Imagine the waiting lines!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Vincent Price double feature
Review: The version of House on Haunted Hill that I own is the Diamond Entertainment version paired with Last Man on Earth. Both are fully restored, and House is in widescreen. House on Haunted Hill is a typically hamfisted William Castle misfire which does start out well (the opening scene of Price awaiting his guests is particularly well-done) but soon degenerates into one awkward shock moment after another. NOTE: Why do some directors think that a woman's piercing screams every five minutes make a film scary? Last Man on Earth is a low-budget Italian version of Richard Matheson's SF classic I Am Legend, about the last normal man in a world of vampires. Though not perfect, it is far superior to the '70s Charlton Heston version, and is worth seeing, especially for Price's haunting performance and some effective moments of horror. The rating reflects two stars for House and four stars for Last Man.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: THIS IS SO[ Awful]!!!
Review: This is an awful movie. There is only one good jolt in the whole thing, but other than that this isn't scary at all. Just a long boring piece of cinema. The re-make was better, and the re-make was awful as well. Don't see it alone in the dark, because you'll need someone to wake you up!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Anybody wanna make 10,000 dollars?
Review: This is one of my absolute favorites. Vincent Price RULED the horror world in the late 50's and ALL of the 60's. This is the premise of the film: Frederick Loren (Price) invites 5 people to come to a haunted house to stay overnight to make 10,000 dollars. Pretty easy, right? Only if you have nerves of steel. This movie keeps you one the edge of your seat the whole time, and you'll never guess who's really causing all the mayhem!! I recommend this film to anyone who wants a really good old fashioned horror to watch on a Saturday afternoon. It's just a great film.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Why don't you have this yet?
Review: The ONLY Vincent Price, in my opinion. Delightfully scary, wonderfully shiek, frightfully silly. Of course, the DVD doesn't come with a skeleton that drops from the ceiling like in the original showing of the movie in theaters, but hey...dig up your own skeleton! This is a true treat that I've watched again and again!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Spry combination of mystery and horror
Review: _House On Haunted Hill_ is a good old fashioned black and white haunted house movie featuring Vincent Price in a suitably sober yet hammy role. Pleasant throughout its 75 minutes, it is an effective blend of Agatha Christie mystery and supernatural horror thriller. With a low gore content and an emphasis on suspense, this is an unabashed vehicle for the excellent Price, who even speaks straight at the camera on occasion-- only punctuating how much of a fun ride the flick is. The narrative manages to be sprightly and entertaining while at the same time keeping the audience continually guessing: not only as to the true innocence/guilt of the protagonists but also as to whether the "hauntings" are genuine or staged. It would have been interesting to see this in the theater so many decades ago, where at some screenings the climax had a skeleton fly suspended on a wire over the heads of the audience! Purportedly banned in Finland, this is an enjoyable romp recommended to horror buffs.


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