Dir: Ti West
Year: 2008
Cast: Jocelin Donahue, Tom Noonan, A.J. Bowen
Genre: Horror
Cert: 18
The House of The Devil is the 1983 set story of a college girl named Samantha who upon finding the house of her dreams, needs to come up with the first months rent by the end of the weekend or she may me lose it. Her best friend Megan offers to get her well endowed parents to lend her the money, but Samantha's pride forbids her as she looks for a job, she notices an advert for an immediate babysitter for that night, way out in the woods. Megan decides she wants to come along and brings her out to the woods, they arrive at the house owned by Mr. Ulman and his wife, Mrs. Ulman. The two are very strange but insistent that she take this job, even quadrupling the amount she was originally to be payed to ensure she will stay, Samantha then tells Megan to go on home and wait for her call to pick her up.
I'm gonna leave the description there because I'd like to give absolutely nothing away from this film.
It's safe to say that this is one of the best horror films in the last 10 years, without a doubt. Ti West has earned my respect from this film (Gonna forget he was involved with V/H/S, my next review...). With this film he literally made an 80's horror, it's like an 80's horror film was lost in a vault somewhere and only emerged now. He got the atmosphere, filming style, music, everything down to a T. The opening credits for example were done in a style that is basically dead now, the only other film similar was The Devils Rejects, but that's more 70's styled.
The opening titles and actors names appear on screen in that yellow font, and the image freezing each time, very old school, you can't look at that image and think it's from 2008! It's insane. The thing I loved most about this film is that is isn't the usual bullshit Paranormal Activity excuse for horror where a blurry blob floats by the camera and spills someones pint and we're expected to shit ourselves, that's the depressing road horror films have gone down now... but no, instead this is a complete atmosphere builder. It's about 45 mins before ANY actual violence occurs on screen. Before the main plot even sets in really. It relies on serious atmospheric tension, and it works a fucking treat. Extremely intense and one of my friends who I was watching it with, was doing his best to keep his arse from collapsing while watching. The attention to detail in this was fantastic, even shooting on 16mm film to give it that authentic 80's horror look, the shooting style was similar too, none of this over dynamic trying to be scary camerawork that just takes away from the atmosphere, just simple, long takes of what's going on, it's absolutely mind blowing really. It's like The Artist of horror films, and gives hope that maybe more people will do stuff like this. Obtain old cameras and maybe shoot a Western or Film Noir in old style, or an 80's sci-fi, Blade Runner-esque type film.
In terms of acting I think it was very good from everyone, because it was set back in the 80's there couldn't be any shite facebook references that are thrown in left right and centre. Some cunt with a camera phone taking a picture of Freddy Kruger "I'm putting this on twitter!" Fuck you and your twitter *Cue Freddy fisting him with his glove on*. The acting was authentic and not over played, again it felt like I was watching 80's actors delivering 80's dialogue, very authentic. Tom Noonan I think steals the show though, as the lurching fucking maniac Mr. Ulman, which is different kind of maniac to the Iron Butterfly loving psychopath he played in Manhunter, he's a lot more subtle in this but still very intimidating in an "I'll rape you" sort of way. It's difficult to review content in this film without ruining anything because most of it is build up and atmosphere, but I'm giving it my best! The last 15 mins or so were a bit rushed I thought, though I was definitely interested in what was going on and sitting on the chair by a thread with intensity, it seemed like they were supposed to be on a schedule and just went "OK let's wrap this up as quick as we can!". I think the ending was deadly and all, but as I said it seemed a bit rushed, especially with how slow the build up was. Either way, I think this is an absolute masterpiece of horror film making, and my SECOND 5 star review, this also marks the last time I'll mention the order of my 5 star reviews... but trust me, V/H/S will NOT be joining that group...
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