The House of the Dead

1978

1h 20m

IMDb RATING

4.6/10

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Horror

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Thriller

When a philandering husband accidentally finds himself lost during a rainstorm, he’s taken in by an elderly mortician and is forced to learn the ghastly origins of four freshly arrived corpses.

Directors

Sharron Miller

Writers

David O'Malley(writer by)

Stars

John Ericson

Ivor Francis

Judith Novgrod

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Top cast

Talmudge

The Mortician

Miss Sibiler

Growski

Detective Malcolm Toliver

Inspector McDowal

Cantwell

Mrs. Lumquist

Julie

Marie

Marie's Husband

Directors

Sharron Miller

Writers

David O'Malley(writer by)

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Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

This was a decent anthology film in the tradition of 'Twilight Zone: The Movie' and 'Creepshow', and was director Miller's only cinematic feature in her career from 1971-2002. It has an interesting framing device of a man, cheating on his wife with a married woman, taking a cab from where he had a late-night rendezvous with his mistress, but instead of being dropped off at his hotel, where he wants to call his wife (perhaps in feeling guilty, maybe just as an excuse not to have to stay with his partner after intercourse), is left at another place altogether. In trying to locate his hotel, he encounters strange, unresponsive man, then many empty buildings, and is finally offered shelter from the rain and a cup of hot coffee by an embalmer. Though the man feels really creeped out and tries to leave, the mortician, lonely and seemingly wanting company, makes him feel guilty and in politeness the man stays to see the five coffins the host wants to show him. After that comes four short stories, told in flashback, as the mortician (a creepy Ivor Francis) shows each of the coffin's contents (only to his visitor, not to us viewers) and, in a morality tale of sorts, what the person did wrong to get there: --The first story is by far the worst. A nasty teacher that hates children gets her comeuppance; --Secondly, a man that makes snuff films, having a movie camera on in his living room, while having a series of women over for 'dates'. He's arrested, and it's left to the imagination (at least, how the cut I watched from my Mill Creek 50-film 'Nightmare Worlds' pack was edited) how he was killed; --Thirdly, by far the most interesting and best executed of the stories, the best detective in England visits his American counterpart, and while they dine together, the host Detective Toliver receives a mysterious and anonymous note that in three days, someone he knows will be murdered horrifically--This was outstandingly carried out, and deserves special credit; --Fourthly, a cynical man who cares about no one other than himself is trapped inside a deserted building, then seemingly escapes, only to find himself trapped in a garbage truck, only sometimes given bottles of booze to mark the time; --The fifth coffin is empty, and the climax extremely predictable, but still watchable. I conclude that if you're the sort that likes the aforementioned two movies, or late-night horror to begin with, you'll enjoy this shabby, poor-boy's version. For those so inclined, it's worth one watch. Only the third segment is worth a rewatch, however.

talisencrw14 Apr, 2016