This cheesily bad horror film is a great amusement to watch. Made as one in the series of four 'House of Doom' television movies, this shows the once-great director Lucio Fulci at work, his star sadly on the wane here with only a few moments in the movie which resemble his earlier career. The movie, a standard haunted house flick, takes its inspiration from a number of sources, but aside from a few moments of gore its impact is diluted all the way through.
Things set off with a supposedly violent teenage gang (inspiration? Think LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT and all of its imitations) robbing village shops and suffocating a black cat in a plastic bag – the latter scene is hilarious and has to be seen to be believed, just for the sheer bad taste of it. They break into an old, remote country mansion and after a cool, short action sequence end up butchering the occupants. End of the film you think? Oh no, because for some unexplained reason, the clocks all go backwards, the dead return to life and the gang members find themselves on the receiving end of some rough justice.
This film contains nothing like the gore level in Fulci's earlier classics. One gutting in a greenhouse is particularly gruesome, and a hark back to the nasty days, but otherwise this film is pretty tame, although still pretty bloody in places. There are a couple of good shotgun blasts and lots of showy makeup. The plot is inconsequential, and merely a series of contrived death sequences, and the acting is horrible. The only actor of note is genre stalwart Al Cliver, cast as a deformed gardener, who has a hilarious moment where he takes on the role of Jack Nicholson in THE SHINING. Other things worth watching for include the hilarious dream ending, and the final twist, which will have you rolling in your seat with laughter. A classic of bad film entertainment, this is fast-moving and cheesy fare.
Things set off with a supposedly violent teenage gang (inspiration? Think LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT and all of its imitations) robbing village shops and suffocating a black cat in a plastic bag – the latter scene is hilarious and has to be seen to be believed, just for the sheer bad taste of it. They break into an old, remote country mansion and after a cool, short action sequence end up butchering the occupants. End of the film you think? Oh no, because for some unexplained reason, the clocks all go backwards, the dead return to life and the gang members find themselves on the receiving end of some rough justice.
This film contains nothing like the gore level in Fulci's earlier classics. One gutting in a greenhouse is particularly gruesome, and a hark back to the nasty days, but otherwise this film is pretty tame, although still pretty bloody in places. There are a couple of good shotgun blasts and lots of showy makeup. The plot is inconsequential, and merely a series of contrived death sequences, and the acting is horrible. The only actor of note is genre stalwart Al Cliver, cast as a deformed gardener, who has a hilarious moment where he takes on the role of Jack Nicholson in THE SHINING. Other things worth watching for include the hilarious dream ending, and the final twist, which will have you rolling in your seat with laughter. A classic of bad film entertainment, this is fast-moving and cheesy fare.