Welcome to TBO.com. Skip directly to: our Keyword Search, Section Navigation, Content.

TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

TBO.com - Tampa Bay Online

John Allman

If you’ve ever wandered the aisles at the video store or surfed the DVR pay-per-view options and seen a bunch of movies that you’ve never heard of, chances are John has watched them. Why? He loves movies. All kinds of movies. Good, bad, so-bad-they’re good, even the truly unwatchable ones. He mostly loves horror and science-fiction and drive-in exploitation movies that most upstanding model citizens wouldn’t dare watch. Then he writes up his thoughts so you can decide - watch, don’t watch or avoid at all costs. Sometimes he even gets to talk to the cool folks who make some of your favorite films.

Blood, Violence and Babes
John Allman

Most Recent Entries

Monthly Archives

The House of the Devil

Posted Feb 3, 2010 by John Allman

Updated Feb 3, 2010 at 10:03 AM

The House of the Devil
Genre: Horror
Directed by: Ti West
Run time: 95 minutes
Rating: R
Format: DVD

The Lowdown: From the opening credits to its chilling final frame, “The House of the Devil” plays like a long-lost cult classic.

Ti West’s breakout feature straddles two worlds that genre fans probably thought had been forgotten.

On one hand, it’s 1975, a time when films like “The Devil’s Rain” and “Race with the Devil,” two chilling Satan worshipping fright flicks, played on public paranoia that the Devil was the be-all, end-all of terror.

On the other, it’s 1982, reminding anyone in their late 30s and early 40s of the unbridled joy that came with watching well-made, low-budget sleepers like “Slumber Party Massacre” and “The Beast Within” gleefully shock through moments of breathtaking carnage.

West came out swinging with his 2005 debut “The Roost,” a Midnight Movie-worthy zombie mash-up that also featured one of his “Devil” stars, Tom Noonan, beloved to fans as Francis Dollarhyde from Michael Mann’s “Manhunter,” another mid-80s classic.

West stumbled a bit with his next two features, “Trigger Man,” a survival thriller that no one saw, and “Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever,” the long-delayed, just now releasing follow-up to Eli Roth’s disappointing hit.

“The House of the Devil” works on all levels. From a sheer moviemaking perspective, West’s camera eye has evolved nicely. He creatively stages each scene for maximum impact, lets his lens linger almost to the point of discomfort at times and makes ample use of long shots to build tension. Story-wise, this is his most direct film yet and he wastes little time on extraneous subplots or characters.

West gets what scares us. It’s not Holy Crap jump scares. It’s a slow dawning discovery that something isn’t right. It’s a wonderful musical interlude where Samantha (the very good Jocelin Donahue) dances throughout the house listening to a Walkman stereo playing The Fixx. When she inadvertently bumps into, and breaks, a vase, it’s like she’s been slapped out of a daze and finally realizes, this is not my house, I don’t know this house at all. That moment, so simple yet perfectly executed, begins the harrowing descent from creepy, meditative horror movie to balls-out bloodbath.

West keeps the twists coming throughout the climax and even if the ending feels a little rushed, it’s still effective.

For true retro geeks, check out Amazon.com to pick-up a DVD/VHS bundle pack of “HOTD,” which truly would be the perfect way to watch such a wonderful homage to the movies that populated the shelves on the wood-paneled walls at the local mom-and-pop owned Video World, way back before Blockbuster ruled the rental market.

The Stuff You Care About:
Hot chicks – Yes.
Nudity – Brief.
Gore – Yes.
Drug use – Yes.
Bad Guys/Killers – Satan worshippers.
Buy/Rent – Buy it.
Release Date – Feb. 2, 2010