Search - The House of the Demon on DVD

Make up your mind, movie: funny or scary--or neither

P. Mann | Los Angeles | 05/25/2009

(2 out of 5 stars)

"The opening credits for this little film seemed to be dragging on far too long, especially when the music ended but the credits didn't. Then there's voice-over, two people, one of whom is asking the other what happened to the music. Later in the film, a similar attempt at humor occurs when the actors suddenly start speaking in Spanish. It was as if at times the film tried to be Airplane!, albeit unsuccessfully.

The story itself is simple. A student inherits a house from a relative. Alas, the relative dabbled in black magic, something the student is unaware of before he decides to host a Halloween party there. In many ways, "The House of the Demon" is reminiscent of Night of the Demons though not nearly as good. The acting is mostly competent, and the presumably tiny budget, though evident (as in a scene at the school that is supposed to be in a classroom but looks for all the world like a stage at a small theater), does not interfere too much with the film. But the awkward dichotomy between comedy and horror never meshes (unlike, say, Feast), and I found myself singularly unimpressed.
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