Review of The House of the Devil (2009) by Alex G — 07 Jan 2011

THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL is an 80's, "Horror Homage" dream come true.

Frankly, I've grown a bit desensitized to today's horror film. I'm not really sure what that says about me exactly... but I happen to remember a better time when things like tension and pacing were the cornerstone to a good horror flick. Today's tendency is to show everything you can possibly show on screen (and right away).

Would it hurt today's horror film directors to slow their films down a bit?

Shades of Hitchcock in the pacing of this superb little horror film from director, Ti West. THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL does an excellent job of taking the best parts of 80's horror and putting them up for a new generation.

Understand... we're not talking about taking cues from 80'S mega-horror hits like the "FRIDAY THE 13th" or "NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET"... We're talking about the real, skeevy 80's flicks like "BLACK CANDLES", "I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE", "LET'S SCARE JESSICA TO DEATH" or "DON'T ANSWER THE PHONE".

You know...The grungy, gritty drive-in stuff.

There are nods to some of the more successful horror flicks from the late 70's/ early 80's like ROSEMARY's BABY and THE EXORCIST... but the feel and desired effect of HOUSE OF THE DEVIL is to revisit the lesser-known cult classics.

Now, I'm not suggesting all of those old films were great. Some were absolutely ridiculous productions that might have most casual viewers wondering why anyone would bother to revisit this particular sub-genre. B-Movie horrors tended to make do with horrible effects, laughable premises and quite often made enormous demands on the audiences' ability to suspend disbelief. But one thing they did have, was mood and atmosphere to spare.

THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL is one of THOSE types of movie. It retains all that is integral to those creepy, schlocky horror films from the 80's but wisely... deftly... adds incredible amounts of flair and tension with decent sets, effective lighting, noteworthy cinematography and ore than just a little bit of very well-done gore. (You just gotta wait for it)!

Tom Noonan is completely creepy in the role of "Head Satanist". Noonan is creepy in pretty much anything I ever see him in and THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL is a perfect film for him. Subdued and underplayed, Noonan is just - plain - disturbing.

The rest of the cast is stocked with complete unknowns... but that doesn't effect your viewing pleasure in the least. In fact, the cast's anonymity lends a true sense of realism to the effort. Everybody does a great job conveying the required mood.

The most common criticism I hear about THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL is how slow the pacing is. Realistically, I dont know how anybody in today's age of MTV quick edits could possibly sit through this film and NOT make that complaint. People want their gore fast and furious and that isn't going to happen here. I will tell you that if you watch THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL under the right conditions (lights off, close to midnight, alone in the house or with your significant other watching in fear through the gaps in their fingers )... and you have a love for those old films... you'll get more than a few frights out of it.