Spoiler Alert! – The House of the Devil
by Matt Gamble on Dec.08, 2009, under Features, Movies, Reviews, Spoiler Alert!, Where the Long Tail Ends, podcast
That’s right, this week you get a double dose of podcasts from us here at Where the Long Tail Ends. James and I have been mentioning for sometime that we wanted to watch and review the 70′s throwback horror film The House of the Devil, but do to our busy schedules we never had the chance to get together. But finally, finally, we were able to get enough free time to sit down and have an in depth and spoiler filled discussion about this interesting film.
Also, big thanks to Craig Varian of 400 Lonely Things (whom I interviewed at this year’s Flyway Film Festival) who was nice enough to give me a copy of his latest album Tonight of the Living Dead, an album composed entirely from the soundtrack to the the landmark horror film Night of the Living Dead. And since The House of the Devil uses an interesting technique involving clips of Night of the Living Dead to help show the passage of time in the film, it seemed only fitting to use one of the songs from Tonight of the Living Dead to close out the show. I can’t speak highly enough about the album, so be sure to check out the 400 Lonely Things website and get yourself a copy of it for yourself.
400 Lonely Things (Website)
400 Lonely Things (MySpace)
Tonight of the Living Dead (Website)
As always, thanks for listening!
Opening Music – Face to Face by Daft Punk
Closing Music – The Music Box by 400 Lonely Things
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December 8th, 2009 on 11:43 am
Our brief discussion of the events that transpired in Jordan, MN (in aid of our discussion of the elements of ‘The Satanic Panic’ from which this film draws) inspired me to do a bit more research into the subject.
Apparently, of the 27 people accused of abuse or having child pornography, every last one was exonerated. This information surprised me, but I think that it’s important that I mention it here as I was under the impression (when we recorded) that there was some truth to the allegations. Although the exoneration of the suspects does not necessarily mean there was no abuse, it still merits mention here.
Also, here are the lyrics of a punk rock song by a Chicago-based band called ‘Big Black.’ One of its members, Steve Albini, has gone on to become a big name in the punk rock music industry. It was penned in the eighties and is representative of the opinion that the rest of the country had of Jordan, MN during this time.
‘Jordan Minnesota’ by Big Black
This is Jordan, we do what we like
This is Jordan, we do what we like
Stay with me, my five year old
Stay with me, play hide and seek
Stay with me, my five year old
This is Jordan, we do what we like
And this will stay with you until you die
And this will stay with you until you die
And I will stay with you until you die
And this is Jordan, we do what we like
And this will stay with you until you die
And this will stay with you until you die
This will stay with you until you die
And I will stay with you until you die
Suck daddy, suck daddy, suck daddy, etc.
December 8th, 2009 on 12:44 pm
I saw HOUSE OF THE DEVIL on the big screen at a midnight showing for the Milwaukee film festival. My reactions are a little more mixed, although I think it’s certainly a more interesting horror film than most of what we get.
I’ll start with my negatives. I’m really not a fan of the ending. When you’re doing a slow burn, you better knock the climax out of the park and I thought the ending was only a double not a home run. I kind of thought that the “elderly mother” was out of place with the rest of the movie. Further, I think they were trying too hard for a “Carrie White burns in hell” final twist/stinger at the end. (One point where I think the film really goes more for an homage than being its own thing.) It might have worked if the gore effects immediately prior weren’t so effective. I wonder if it would have been a better horror movie if it had just cut out the coda.
I kind of think that the film is a little short in plot. Babysitter goes to the “House of the Devil” and freaky stuff eventually happens is the extent of it. A little misdirection may have added to the film.
I wasn’t as taken with Jocelin Donahue as you guys apparently were. I didn’t think she was bad, but I thought the character was pretty bland. Yeah, they threw in the quirk that’s she’s a clean freak, but I don’t think enough was done with that. To me, Greta Gerwig was much more interesting.
I also thought that the first act took much too long. The film isn’t long as it is, but it wouldn’t have hurt to get them to the house sooner.
But, in a positive vein….
I agree that the strongest part of the movie is the sense of dread and forboding it induces. Tonally this movie works. It doesn’t feel like a cheesy homage, but it’s own serious thing.
I thought the cemetary scene between Greta Gerwig and A. J. Bowen was extremely effective, especially the ending.
Tom Noonan hits all the right notes. He’s soft spoken enough that he comes off as a little weird, but not a real threat. And I think that helps sell the rest of the movie. It’s a bit like Anthony Perkins vs. Vince Vaughn as Norman Bates in explaining why she doesn’t take to the hills immediately.
And I can’t state this strongly enough, the movie looks good. I’ve been watching a lot of Hammer Films recently and I can’t tell you how refreshing it is to see horror movies that look good instead of the modern junk we get. That tells me right away that some care was put into the movie beyond having a couple of stock jump scares. It’s a real movie, with attention to look and acting, instead of an excuse to grope your date. To me, visually, it reminded me quite a bit of the original Halloween with the camera prowling after the babysitter in the dark.
December 8th, 2009 on 11:44 pm
Robert – I am glad that I am not alone with regards to the ending. You are right – the ultimate ending, with the putative shocking reveal, closes the show on a sour note. I appreciate your reflections on the look of the film. That was one of its finer points.
It’s good luck that you got a chance to see it on the big screen.
May 27th, 2010 on 8:35 am
I love Hammer Horror. Been a big fan since I was a kid. My bro and I loved the Dracula and Frankenstein movies. I highly recommend some of the more obscure vampire titles such as Vampire Circus, Twins of Evil, and Kiss of the Vampire. They are very enjoyable movies and shouldn’t be missed by Hammer fans even though they don’t star Cushing and Lee.