This uneven, film takes a great concept but doesn't always know what to do with it. With his family about to be evicted, thirteen-year-old Fool (it's a nickname) agrees to help a thief break into Fool's landlord's house to steal some valuable gold coins. Only they get much more than they bargained for when they find the bizarre landlord and his equally strange wife keep several guests trapped in the basement.
"The People Under the Stairs" starts out strong, promising to be a solid horror picture. But it's soon weighed down by its many flaws. The evil landlord, roaming the hallways of the spooky mansion in a tight leather suit, his rifle in hand, is ridiculously over the top. Brandon Adams as Fool is generally acceptable, but whenever he tries to portray emotions, particularly fear, he looks like a bit player in a junior high production. Storywise, the film focuses too much on the homeowners and Fool's attempts to rescue their supposed daughter and not enough on the zombie-like title characters, who held enormous potential.
Though it gets full marks for originality, "The People Under the Stairs" doesn't work as well as it could have. Still, director Wes Craven has done a lot worse!
"The People Under the Stairs" starts out strong, promising to be a solid horror picture. But it's soon weighed down by its many flaws. The evil landlord, roaming the hallways of the spooky mansion in a tight leather suit, his rifle in hand, is ridiculously over the top. Brandon Adams as Fool is generally acceptable, but whenever he tries to portray emotions, particularly fear, he looks like a bit player in a junior high production. Storywise, the film focuses too much on the homeowners and Fool's attempts to rescue their supposed daughter and not enough on the zombie-like title characters, who held enormous potential.
Though it gets full marks for originality, "The People Under the Stairs" doesn't work as well as it could have. Still, director Wes Craven has done a lot worse!