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Starring |
Jocelin Donahue
,
Tom Noonan
,
Mary Woronov
,
AJ Bowen
,
Dee Wallace
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Directed By |
Ti West
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Audio
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Dolby Digital 5.1
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Visuals
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16:9 Anamorphic Widescreen
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Running Time |
91 mins
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UK Release Date |
March 15, 2010
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Genre |
Horror
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Our Rating |
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User Rating |
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College student Samantha (Donahue) is hard up for cash and decides to make a little extra money by responding to a babysitter ad posted on campus. However, after a strange conversation with her potential employer over the phone, Samantha’s trepidation turns to suspicion when she turns up at the house and discovers that there is no actual ‘baby’ to ‘sit’ for.
Having fallen out with the studio over Cabin Fever 2 (which got a producer re-cut), indie/horror filmmaker Ti West subsequently faced problems with his follow up, The House Of The Devil, which fell victim to a four-minute cut and disagreements over marketing. So, is Ti West a perfectionist and a genre director with a vision, or a prima donna who doth protest too much? If The House Of The Devil is anything to go by, we’d guess the former.
Both retro and subversive, Ti West impressively and accurately harks back to 80s horror with a film that would appear to be straight out of an independent video shop circa 1983. By adopting filming techniques that defined the era of VHS horror, filming in 16mm and recreating some intriguing period hairdos, West creates a film that looks like the genuine article while avoiding postmodern irony and knowing winks to the audience.
The plot (without giving the specifics away) also adds to the effective retro ambience, taking place during an era of satanic paranoia when rumours of McDonalds’ affiliation with Satanism abounded and Ouija boards and backwards-playing vinyl were all the rage. It makes The House Of The Devil feel all the more like the real thing.
However, while the stripped-down, retro approach makes The House Of The Devil sound like a gimmick and little else (complete with a clever use of a synth soundtrack, curious 80s-style zooms and a few cameo nods to 80s horror icons like Dee Wallace and Mary Woronov), it’s the skill in West’s crafting of both mood and dread that makes the film a real winner. It’s a slow, sometimes weird but always intriguing experience, and one that’s rich in atmosphere and generous with the shocks. Indeed, we’re pretty sure there weren’t many straight-to-video horrors as good as this back in the VHS glory days.
The DVD includes some uninformative on-set footage, though the two commentaries provide plenty of insight, with an entertaining and casual chat with the director and his (rather excellent) star, Jocelin Donahue. The second commentary offers a more technical walk through the proceedings with the director, the sound designer and the producers.
Overall Verdict: An atmosphere-rich 80s-style horror. A real gem.
Special Features:
Audio Commentary With Writer/Director/Editor Ti West And Actor Jocelin Donahue
Audio Commentary With Writer/Director/Editor Ti West And Crew
‘In The House Of The Devil’ Featurette
Deleted Scenes
Trailer
Reviewer: Lee Griffiths