The Legend of Hell House
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Movie Reviews of The Legend of Hell House
Movie Review: Flawed but Memorable
Summary: 4 Stars
All roads lead to Rome--or in the case of haunted house stories to Shirley Jackson's THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE. Published in 1959 and then memorably filmed by Robert Wise with Julie Harris in 1963, both book and film have exerted a powerful influence over the years, and this was particularly true where author Richard Matheson was concerned: although he added a number of original ideas and created a memorable chiller, his popular novel HELL HOUSE was so similar to the Jackson blueprint that it is a wonder her estate did not contemplate legal action.The novel's film version, THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE, inevitably suffers in the comparison to both Jackson's novel and its film version. But while it is not a great film, it is a very good one--and it has a number of assets that ghost story connoisseurs will relish. As in Jackson's story, the plot concerns four individuals sent to investigate a house of very unsavory reputation: two men and two women. Here the expedition is led by a skeptic, Dr. Barrett (Clive Revill), who believes that "hauntings" are manifestations of residual energy rather than of surviving personalities--and who considers the Belasco house an ideal opportunity to put his theory to a practical test.
He is accompanied by his wife Ann (Gayle Hunnicutt) and two mediums: Benjamin Fischer (Roddy McDowall), who has the distinction of being one of the few individuals to have previously visited Belasco House and lived to tell about it, and Christian spiritualist Florence Tanner (Pamela Franklin), who soon clashes with Dr. Barrett over his skepticism. And although Dr. Barrett has meticulously planned this investigation into Belasco House, from the moment the party enters the doors nothing turns out the way any of them expect.
The great thing about the film is Pamela Franklin, who was one of the most interesting actresses of the 1960s and early 1970s, first making her mark as a child in the memorable thriller THE INNOCENTS and then giving a devastating turn as one of her teacher's pets in THE PRIME OF MISS JEAN BRODIE. While THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE is hardly on the same level as these other films, Franklin herself is--and she is quite extraordinary from start to finish. (It is a tremendous pity her career faltered not long after the release of this film.) McDowell also offers a memorable turn as Mr. Fischer, and Revill and Hunnicutt offer superior performances as well.
The fact that it was filmed on a low budget is actually an asset to the movie, for instead of elaborate set-ups the film emerges as visually lean and clean, relying on its performances to create a very effective mounting sense of unease. Where it falls down--and more than a little--is in the script, which was written by Matheson himself. There are too many loose ends here, and while in some hands this might result in a sense of mystery, here it gives the feeling of sloppiness. Perversely, it also suffers from a determination to explain away everything it can, and the result is often somewhat anti-climatic.
The DVD offers nothing in the way of extras beyond the original trailer, but for the most part the transfer is quite good. Some critics have noted that the soundtrack is slightly out of synch at points, but I myself did not particularly notice this to any great extent; others have commented that the version released to the home market has been slightly edited, but since I have never seen it except in this release I cannot comment. I will say, however, that edited or not, and largely due to Franklin's performance and McDowell's strong support, THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE will likely satisfy viewers who prefer their ghost stories strong on atmosphere and psychology. For all its flaws it is a memorable film, and well worth having.
GFT, Amazon Reviewer
Movie Review: Memorable haunted house thriller
Summary: 4 Stars
Any haunted house thriller owes a huge debt to Shirley Jackson's THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE and Robert Wise's different but equally evocative film "The Haunting". "The Legend of Hell House" based on Richard Matheson's bestselling novel (and a homage to Jackson)is turned into a no nonsense thriller by director John Hough. Featuring distorted camera angles, strong performances and (thankfully)a complete absence of CGI effects, "House" is still highly atmospheric and effective 32 years later. Those that are looking for gore and a lack of subtly and intelligence are instructed to purchase/rent the latest version of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" instead.
Dr. Lionel Barrett (Clive Revill)a physicist who has been studying the paranormal is given a plum assignment; prove to the new owner of the Belasco House that there is life after death by documenting the supernatural occurances there within a week and receive 100,000 pounds. He'll also get the funds to complete his new device designed to measure psychic activity scientifically prior to embarking on his mission to "Hell House". Barrett is saddled with Benjamin Fischer (Roddy McDowall) a psychic who was the only survivor of the last attempt to study Hell House and Florence Tanner a young medium. Ann (Gayle Hunnicutt)Lionel's wife insists on accompanying him on this difficult and dangerous investigation. What they discover defies explanation and what they discover about the house and Belasco himself is frightening and surprising.
Hough's stylish direction makes up for the slim budget of the film and the strong performances by veterans of British screen and stage add a grim sense of reality to the events. Interestingly, Pamela Franklin who plays Tanner also appears in another well regarded suspense thriller about ghosts--she plays the little girl in "The Innocents". The screenplay by Matheson is lean and effective adding to the eerie direction of Hough and the believable performances.
The transfer here is solid if unremarkable. I had hoped that Fox might spent a bit more on this cult classic to spiff it up for DVD release. There's some minor dirt and debris but the film itself looks petty good overall. There's nothing remarkable about the extras however--we get the film's original trailer as is typical of Fox for releases like this trailers for other Fox thrillers. It's that Hough wasn't asked to do a commentary track as he did a terrific one for his B-movie classic "Dirty Mary and Crazy Larry" (where, by the way, McDowall makes a cameo). If licensed out to Anchor Bay I'm sure we would have gotten a featurette or interviews but Fox doesn't do anything special for fans of the film here.
Still, I'm happy that this minor classic is available on DVD even if it isn't given quite the respect it deserves by Fox. Although the last third of the film doesn't quite hold up as well as the first 2/3rds, this is still a terrific movie that suspense thriller fans (I'd say horror movie but that implies a different audience today) will enjoy.
Movie Review: Relentless (non-CGI) chiller
Summary: 4 Stars
Old, decrepit and yet showing sinister signs of life - the foregoing seems to describe both the haunted house at the heart of the movie and the movie itself. Obviously dated, and showing no breakthrough effects, "The Legend of Hell House" easily matches the CGI-scarefests of today. Not an outright shocker, "Hell House" excels with gallons of unleaded chill. The plot is similar to that for "The Haunting of Hill House" - scientists experimenting on the beyond decide to chance a stay at a bona-fide haunted house. In this flick, it's the mansion of the mysterious Emeric Belasco - an appropriately grim British manor owned by man known for an "awful visage". In Belasco's lifetime the house played host to an entire catalog of human depravity. Belasco himself disappeared by the time an expedition to the house uncovered the grisly remains of his many guests. Decades later, and in true movie-science tradition, Lionel Barrett believes that there's an exotic-yet-natural explanation for the phenomenon that has made Belasco-house the "Mount Everest of haunted houses". Roddy Macdowell plays Fischer, one of the two mediums on this trip - and also the sole survivor of a similar effort from 1953. Fischer's past experience makes him an expert - though it soon emerges that his survival owed to his unwillingness to open his mind to the horrors of the house. Pamela Franklin (the preternaturally mature student from "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie") is Tanner, the other medium. If Fischer is reticent to angry spirits of the house, Tanner opens herself entirely to it/them. Then there's Barrett's wife...
Well, I don't want to spoil things too much. "Hell House" delivers its shocks on a thin conceit - but it does its job well. Very much laying groundwork for "Blair Witch", "Hell House" leads by relying less on special visual effects than on a careful combination of harsh sound effects and the expressions of the main characters - if it's scary enough for Roddy Macdowall, it's probably scary enough for the rest of us. Instead of a score, there's some jarring sounds which are quite reminiscent of "Blair Witch", and the flick even brazenly, yet effectively relies on date/time captions, as if it were a documentary. What saves "Hell House" from camp (and unfortunately, there's plenty of evidence that it was a close save) is the earnestness that the cast brings to its way-out story - with Franklin who'll do anything to liberate the trapped souls of the house; Clive Revill as the scientist who wants to save humanity from its fear of things that go slash in the night; and Macdowall as the surprising hero who may hold the key to everything. A perfect flick to remind you of the gray days before computer animated pseudo-chills.
Movie Review: The Mount Everest of Haunted Houses
Summary: 4 Stars
The Legend of Hell House remains one of the most effective, shocking and ghostly mysteries put to film.
Released in 1973, the same year as the blockbuster chiller "The Exorcist", the movie unfortunately fell by the way side and got lost in the rush of movie goers eager to witness demons possess a young Linda Blair. While the film is by no means a classic like Exorcist, it's still undeniably powerful and a must see for ghost loving fans and fans of scary movies in general. In the shadow of other spooky classics like The Shining or The Haunting, it's an often forgotten gem.
The modest budget forced the director John Hough to centralize all the action within the house and not delve into any of the complex back story found in the Richard Matheson novel. Matheson's book paints an awesomely evil and bone chilling history of Belasco House and it's owner, Emeric Belasco's depraved indulgences. By plopping the modern characters into the action, you lose much of the sense of horror of what the house was scene to years ago, but some of the dialogue of Matheson's screenplay, especially spoken by the always wonderful Roddy McDowal does make-up for some of the lack of it.
All of the other actors rise to the challenge of the material, while Pamela Franklin is a standout. Her psychic adept persona whose devotion to her Christian faith add an element of spirituality that is often, ironically, missing in most stories about glimpses into the world beyond the one we know and live, gives weight and importance to a role that may have come across as arrogant or holier than thou. Director Hough makes excellent use of music and sound effects to achieve a good number of frights and accentuate the overall menace of the house. And although the explicit nature of Matheson's descriptions of the quite adult desires in the book are never displayed outright, there is enough sharp dialogue and acting to get a sense of the bacchanalia the mansion played host to in years past. This is another mature and disquieting element not often seen in other ghost stories.
This disc contains only a trailer in way of extras and that's a true shame. Chillers in general are paid little respect by mainstream cinema and for a movie of this level to have nothing supplemental is something of a mistake the owners of the film must correct.
Movie Review: Scary Christmas
Summary: 4 Stars
Skeptical parapsychologist Clive Revill is hired by a dying eccentric millionaire to determine whether there is life after death, at "the one place where the afterlife has yet to be refuted": Belasco House ("Hell House"), an isolated and boarded-up Maine mansion built and owned by long-dead Evil Emeric Belasco, the host of every perversion known to man (and perhaps a few that aren't). Along for the week-long holiday in hell (the trip ironically occurs over Christmas season) is Revill's supportive wife Gayle Hunnicut, and two mediums. Physical medium Roddy McDowall is the only survivor of a failed scientific study at Belasco House twenty years ago, who intends to sit on his duff, collect his money, and get the hell out. Mental medium Pamela Franklin is a gullible and naive evangelist, who deludes herself into believing she can exorcize the evil from the house. Before their week in Hell House is out, more than one of the ill-fated party will have passed over, themselves...This is a wonderful little low-budgeter, brilliantly understated, richly colorful, dark and atmospheric. Like the more famous predecessor The Haunting, most of the chills and scares are suggestive as opposed to outright, though Hell House manifests itself more physically in hostile poltergeist activity and there is a great deal more spillage of blood.
Richard Matheson adapted his own excellent novel with admirable restraint and sensibilities, maintaining the psychological horror at a high degree of intensity while streamlining the violence for more general audiences. The cinematography and soundtrack are very moody and atmospheric. The only flaw is a slight overdirection of the actors, which at times serves less to heighten the melodrama (though it usually does) than to create inadvertent comical moments in the midst of it.
But what really sells this great thriller is the cast. They're all stellar, carrying off material that in less capable hands would never work. McDowall and Pamela Franklin are superior. Famous character actor Michael Gough even has a terrific cameo as Evil Emeric.
This is a great cuddle-up-by-the-fire movie for Halloween or the holidays. Don't miss it.