Even the midnight-movie crowd would be hard-pressed to stay awake for the duration of this one.
House of 1000 Corpses (2003)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:75
Fresh:12
Rotten:63
Average Rating:3.3/10
Consensus: There's an abundance of gore in this derivative horror movie, but little sense or wit.
Rated: R [See Full Rating] for strong sadistic violence/gore, sexuality and language
Runtime: 88 mins
Genre: Horror/Suspense
Theatrical Release:Apr 11, 2003 Limited
Box Office: $12,583,510
Synopsis: An empty fuel tank and a flat tire lead two couples down a terror-riddled road to the House of 1000 Corpses. From the dark, demented mind of Rob Zombie comes House of 1000 Corpses, the shock rock... An empty fuel tank and a flat tire lead two couples down a terror-riddled road to the House of 1000 Corpses. From the dark, demented mind of Rob Zombie comes House of 1000 Corpses, the shock rock master’s feature film directorial debut. Though created in the vein of the Creature Feature classic edge-of-your-seat horror flicks of yesterday, House of 1000 Corpses is at its core a story of family--a cast of twisted individuals who, with each slash of a throat or stab thru the chest, add bodies to their sick human menagerie. Capt. Spaulding is Ruggsville’s own PT Barnum. More demented sideshow carney than dazzling circus showman, Spaulding is the operator and proprietor of the Museum of Monsters and Madmen, where weary travelers can fill their gas tanks with the only petrol for miles, and their stomachs with his secret recipe of fried chicken. But those who do drop in sometimes get more than they bargained for. When car problems force cross-country travelers Jerry, Denise, Mary and Bill to stop for a break, the foursome pull into the gas station-cum-museum on the night of October 30, 1977--All Hallows Eve. Though most of the young group is wary of the stranger they find within, Bill is enthralled, for he is penning a book of offbeat roadside attractions and nothing they have come across on their travel quite fits the bill as well as the Museum. Bill soon learns of local "hero" Dr. Satan and decides the group should go off in search of the now local landmark tree where Dr. Satan was hung and from which he disappeared. Offering to share more about local folklore before they leave, Spaulding invites them to take in the Museum’s premiere attraction—the Murder Ride. The Murder Ride features exhibits on: Albert Fish – Fish was an infamous masochist, sadist, child killer, and most importantly, cannibal. Born in 1870, he was driven to madness, tortured with needles through his groin as a child; Ed Greene – Greene, the "Psycho of Mainsfield," was a murderer and cannibal who preyed on women, with particular focus on their sexual organs. Local "Hero" Quail - More fondly known as Dr. Satan, Quail was a murderer, torturer, mastic, and plastic surgeon, who worked at Willows County Medical hospital, nicknamed Weeping Willows. Using his own primitive brain surgery techniques, Quail attempted to create a race of superheroes from the mentally ill. He was hung on a tree, but his body disappeared and has yet to be discovered. Is he still alive? Maybe he lives next door to you? The Murder Ride is Capt. Spaulding’s personal nostalgic trip down memory lane—a trip into a world of darkness, where "life and death are meaningless and pain is God." But for these four travelers, this strange ride is just the beginning… [More]
Starring: Bill Moseley, Karen Black, Sid Haig, Chris Hardwick
Starring: Bill Moseley, Karen Black, Sid Haig, Chris Hardwick, Erin Daniels, Jennifer Jostyn, Michael J. Pollard, Sheri Moon, Tom Towels
Director: Rob Zombie
Director: Rob Zombie
Screenwriter: Rob Zombie
Producer: Andy Gould
Composer: Rob Zombie
Studio: Lions Gate Films
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Reviews for House of 1000 Corpses
The end results are almost strangely devoid of thrills, shocks or horror, other than the sight of not one but two former Oscar nominees (Black and Michael J. Pollard) reduced to such a pitiable career state.
I'm not sure Zombie really wants to scare us at all. Turn our stomachs; maybe, scratch our heads, sure. But scares are not really on the Zombie menu.
Mr. Zombie's shameless pilfering, derivative and uninspired writing, and ham-fisted direction result in a chaotic mess.
The endless gore and violence make the experience torturous -- and not just for the victims in the movie.
Neither scary, perversely funny nor suspenseful, this demented dung heap is not even inventively gory.
Just the right amount of creepy atmosphere, nervous laughter, cheap scares, fun rides and blood and guts to satisfy any major fan of the macabre.
It's made by a guy who named himself after a mindless, soulless, wandering drone who can't make heads or tails of sense or sensibilities. I, for one, am not surprised the movie turned out the way it did.
Somebody should have said, "Whoa, Rob, let's re-think this." But apparently nobody did.
The finished product looks like it's been run through Leatherface's meat grinder.
Zombie works the camera well and his music talents allow for a good use of the hard rock score, but ultimately despite all the visual trickery there's a lack of atmosphere, tension and even shock.
The film is a mess, going all over the graveyard but never finding the grave.
Mr. Zombie's encyclopedic approach to the genre results in a crowded, frenzied film in which no single idea is developed to a satisfying payoff.
Total garbage...visually vile, to be sure...but what's worse is that it's a crushing bore.
Surely the rocker, an incredible admirer of horror films, realized his final product wasn’t above the standards of the kind of straight-to-video shlock that even Elvira or Sybil Danning would be ashamed to present.
Whatever gruesome scenes Zombie might have originally conjured up were either digitally doctored into blurriness or left on the cutting-room floor. Nor are the promised 1,000 corpses ever actually unveiled: Whatever happened to truth in advertising?
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