…that this well produced rubbish from the director of the notorious MARK OF THE DEVIL would still be entertaining 40 years after the fact? In fact HAUNTED HOUSE OF HORROR (U.S. title: HORROR HOUSE) is more enjoyable now than when I saw it back in 1970 on a double bill with THE CURSE OF THE CRIMSON ALTAR (U.S. title: CRIMSON CULT). Both films were released here by American International Pictures hence the presence of Frankie Avalon.
His unhip presence is no longer an issue besides the ending was designed for people who hate Frankie Avalon (I remember my friends and I cheering at the end). Seeing the clothes, hearing the music (and seeing the Frank Zappa poster) took me back to my college days which is probably why I enjoyed it so much this time around. The film is worth it as a time capsule alone. It’s also fascinating to see how prophetic the film turned out to be regarding teenage horror pictures.
When I say well produced, I am referring to the fact of how well the movie plays considering everything that was done to it (check out director Michael Armstrong’s commentary and read the insert that comes with the DVD). The performances are surprisingly engaging considering much of the dialogue and the lighting & the cinematography are better than they have any right to be.
In 1970 I had no idea of the film’s tortured history although this wasn’t the first nor the last film that producer Louis “Deke” Heyward did his best to ruin. In fact the original British version is different and plays a lot better than the one I saw. This was often the case with Tigon films that AIP released stateside. So a tip of the hat to Odeon for this well done release (great picture quality and significant extras). It’s certainly not the “Best of British” but they treat it like it is.
The Capsule Critic 