Richard Matheson adapted the screenplay of The Legend of Hell House from his own novel. In the tradition of Shirley Jackson's Haunting of Hill House, four people with alleged extrasensory powers are called upon to spend a weekend in a supposedly haunted house, to either prove or disprove the presence of ghosts. Roddy McDowall has been in the house before, and refuses to treat the possibility of paranormal activity lightly; scientist Clive Revill believes that he can trace the happenings to
rational explanations involving electric current; Pamela Franklin is convinced that, if spirits exists, she will be able to communicate with them; and Gayle Hunnicutt plays Revill's young wife, ripe for "possession." ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
If John Hough, the director, and his small, willing cast maintain mild tension during their harried visit to this haunted 'hell house,' the few chills they provide are of little help.
John Hough does a fine job with the things-that-go-bump-in-the-night aspects of the material, he fails to breathe any life into Richard Matheson's woefully underdeveloped screenplay, which he adapted from his own novel.
Shows how a creepy and effective story can be told with a single setting, a cast of no more than half a dozen characters, and a minimum of special effects
...a classic spook-house story, with all the ingredients: a scary old mansion, seances in the dark, ectoplasmic manifestations, and things that go bump in the night.
Atmospheric chiller about a group of paranormal investigators who seek to find out the truth behind the hauntings of a mansion in rural England. Solid haunted house movie, creepy and with an ever-present sinister atmosphere. The major downside was that there were no scares, no jumpy moments and I was never having to
watch it through my fingers in fear. It's a worthwhile watch though.
April 20, 2011
Lee ?
Super Reviewer
Classic but campy 70's horror with a bit of a twist. Delightfully dated for those seeking something nostalgic, Gothic and British.
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