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Movies / On DVD / The House of the Devil
The House of the Devil

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The House of the Devil (2009)

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Reviews Counted:16

Fresh:13

Rotten:3

Average Rating:6.7/10

Consensus: Though its underlying themes are familiar, House of the Devil effectively sheds the loud and gory cliches of contemporary horror to deliver a tense, slowly building throwback to the fright flicks of decades past.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for some bloody violence.

Runtime: 1 hr 33 mins

Genre: Horror/Suspense

Theatrical Release:Oct 30, 2009 Limited

Synopsis: A coed struggling to pay her rent ends up taking the wrong part-time job in writer-director Ti West's old-school, 1980s-set horror flick THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL. Samantha (Jocelin Donahue) is a... A coed struggling to pay her rent ends up taking the wrong part-time job in writer-director Ti West's old-school, 1980s-set horror flick THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL. Samantha (Jocelin Donahue) is a sweet-natured and retiring young woman, unlike her rambunctious, loud, and self-assured best buddy, Megan (mumblecore stalwart Greta Gerwig). After moving into a new apartment, Samantha is desperate for a way to make a few more bucks. When Mr. Ulman (Tom Noonan) comes on campus looking for a babysitter, Samantha jumps at the opportunity. Once she convinces Megan to give her a ride to the creepy old Ulman house, Samantha learns that the job is not quite what was advertised--Ulman and his wife (Mary Woronov) don't even have a child. He tells Samantha that she just has to stay in the house with his elderly mother-in-law while he and the missus go out to celebrate the lunar eclipse. When she balks at the change of plans, he offers her more money. As the night goes on, it becomes clear that Samantha is a much bigger part of the Ulmans' plans for the evening than she would ever want to be. West established his genre credentials with low-budget cult favorites THE ROOST (which also starred Noonan) and TRIGGER MAN. THE HOUSE OF THE DEVIL also stars A.J. Bowen and Dee Wallace. The movie had its world premiere in the Midnight section of the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival. [More]

Starring: Jocelin Donahue, Greta Gerwig, Tom Noonan, Mary Woronov

Starring: Jocelin Donahue, Greta Gerwig, Tom Noonan, Mary Woronov, AJ Bowen

Director: Ti West

Director: Ti West
Screenwriter: Ti West
Composer: Jeff Grace
Studio: Magnolia Pictures

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Release:

Feb 2, 2010

[DVD Details]
 
 

DVD Features:

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Reviews for The House of the Devil

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In keeping with his models, West is concerned with not suspense exactly but the ritual withholding and ultimate lavishing of bloody chaos.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
12/17/09
J. R. Jones
J. R. Jones
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

West, a rising young director of minor cult pleasures, comes clean here about his love for all things Bava (Mario) and Carpenter (John).

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
12/03/09
Ty Burr
Ty Burr
Boston Globe
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There's a payoff in The House of the Devil, if you have the patience. Some of the scenes seem draggy, but the characters are complex, and their motivations are explained.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
11/19/09
Peter Hartlaub
Peter Hartlaub
San Francisco Chronicle
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Even the familiar tropes of The House of the Devil are familiar in the right way, like an old, bloodstained sweater.

Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
11/12/09
Michael Phillips
Michael Phillips
Chicago Tribune
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The film may provide an introduction for some audience members to the Hitchcockian definition of suspense: It's the anticipation, not the happening, that's the fun.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
11/12/09
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
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Although the payoff is creepy, it takes a little too long to arrive -- and when it does, it's about as worn-out as the movie's title.

Full Review Source: New York Post | comment 1 Comment
10/30/09
Kyle Smith
Kyle Smith
New York Post
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The House of the Devil is really a romance: a love letter to the kind of gal we thought had given up the ghost.

Full Review Source: Salon.com | comment Comment
10/30/09
Stephanie Zacharek
Stephanie Zacharek
Salon.com
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West's assured way with widescreen framing, long takes and silences followed by sharp if explainable noise are almost cruelly funny in their heart-stopping pleasures.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
10/30/09
Robert Abele
Robert Abele
Los Angeles Times
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After years of vivisectionist splatter, here is a horror movie with real shivers.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
10/29/09
Manohla Dargis
Manohla Dargis
New York Times
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West avoids cliché and cheesiness with wise casting choices. Donahue's naturalistic performance is as persuasive as the subtly sinister portrayals by Tom Noonan and Mary Woronov.

Full Review Source: USA Today | comment Comment
10/29/09
Claudia Puig
Claudia Puig
USA Today
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A slightly faster set-up, and slightly more drawn-out climax, would make this even better.

Full Review Source: Newark Star-Ledger | comment Comment
10/29/09
Stephen Whitty
Stephen Whitty
Newark Star-Ledger
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Writer-director Ti West's crisp, economical, satisfying little horror pic reclaims the pleasures of the kind of old-school formula that the jokey Scream franchise deconstructed into satire.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment Comment
10/28/09
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
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In the end, this homage to '80s horror is little more than a faithful flashback -- authentic in execution but about as scary as something you saw again and again way back when.

Full Review Source: Associated Press | comment Comment
10/27/09
David Germain
David Germain
Associated Press
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Gravely gorgeous in the style of a storybook Snow White, Donahue gives eloquent reaction shots and nails West's pièce de résistance -- a bounding, Walkman-soundtracked, Jazzercise dance through the house.

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
10/27/09
Nick Pinkerton
Nick Pinkerton
Village Voice
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A horror film with no punch.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Reporter | comment Comment
10/26/09
Kirk Honeycutt
Kirk Honeycutt
Hollywood Reporter
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Call it the best '80s babysitter-in-peril movie never made.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment 2 Comments
10/08/09
Peter Debruge
Peter Debruge
Variety
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