House (1985) Revisited Review

A troubled Vietnam veteran turned writer moves into a haunted house after inheriting it from his kooky aunt.

Director Steve Miner (Halloween H20: 20 Years Later, Friday the 13th Part 2) House oozes all the wacky horror comedy staples of the 80s. In the hey days of optical effects and practical make-up House is just as fun (but not as creepy) as on its initial release. At times echoing The Evil Dead (1981), in the vein of Fright Night (1985) and clearly infulcing The Burbs (1989) in terms of suspicion and locations, it deserves a tab in horror history.

Dispite some pacing issues Miner offers suspense at times with a few jump scares and eerie dream sequences. There's severed hands and heads, an obese witch, the impressive zombified corpse of Big Ben, three demonic kids and a stop motion flying skull-face, there's plenty of creepy visuals on display.

William Katt's Roger Cobb balances the special effects with paranoia, obsession with his missing son and PTSD, there's a lot going it what could have been a simple two dimensional character. Notable for horror aficionados Kane Hodder (of Jason, Friday the 13th fame) serves as stunt coordinator.

While the effects may not been as hidden by VHS grain and TV AV connectors on the Bluray format Miner’s House still has plenty of tongue-in-cheek horror fun.