If you grew up in the 80's or even got a taste of late 70's/early 80's horror, then you should know that is a style of the horror genre that seems to have been thrown aside this day and age. However, Ti West has brilliantly resurrected this horror style with his latest American indie film, The House of the Devil.
This film, set in the glorious 1980's, tells the story of Samantha Hughes, a broke college student who needs to get $300 dollars to pay off the first month's down for her new apartment to escape the torment of her roommate. In her struggle to find money she comes across a flyer for babysitting. Samantha takes one of the slips from the flyer and calls the given phone number and gets the job that very night to sit for the Ulman family. This very odd family, reminiscent of the Adams family at times, surprisingly reveal that Sam is not to watch any children but take care of the family's old grandmother for the evening. Sam accepts the suspicious position for a whopping $400 dollars! However, she comes to find that the family she is sitting for have much more evil plans for her, for on this night of a lunar eclipse, all Hell will break loose (pun intended).
As the film begins, it feels like a huge retro trip with the opening credits reflecting Tarantino. Even the picture itself is grainy to match an early 80's style film. The music is very dark and atmospheric. Meanwhile, the actual background to the story adds to the creep factor.
The film is based on how in the early 80's nearly 70% of American adults believed in the existence of abusive satanic cults. That opening message presents viewers with a very chilling reality. Furthermore, it's brilliantly set in the 80's when cell phones, computers, facebook, etc. weren't even thought of yet. This gives one a classic feel of an old haunted house style story, where you are isolated and there is no where else to go. Though this film does give a very creepy atmosphere, it is very slow during the first 45 minutes. Some may get bored and decide to stop the movie; however, I must urge you to avoid that because the suspense and tension begin to heighten immensely as soon as Samantha enters the house. This tension is mainly built on the fear of what is going to pop out at you or suddenly happen to Samantha, even though nothing really happens but some very creepy noises and eerie silent moments. Finally, as the last few minutes of the film unfold, all of that fear and tension explodes into a climactic conclusion.
Not only does the story really work well, but it resembles a lot of old school horror films that didn't show off the true terror until the very end. This is the perfect film to sit and relax and watch during a cold fall night with all of the lights out. The suspense in this film is very effective and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves suspense.
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