House of the Devil (2009)
Samantha is a young college student in 1983 who desperately needs to move out of the dorms and away from her over sexed slob of a roommate, and as luck would have it she finds the perfect house. The problem is she doesn’t have the money for the down payment, but with a few days to scrounge it up she doesn’t tell the landlord that and takes a babysitting gig way out in the county for some people who seem a little creepy. She will be done “shortly after midnight”, both equally desperate: they for a babysitter and she for the cash. Perfect, right?
Did I mention that it’s happening on a Lunar eclipse, or that the family she is babysitting for is a lot more than a little creepy?
Upon arrival she is informed by her contact Mr. Ullman (Tom Noonan who was Frankenstein in Monster Squad/Tooth Fairy in Manhunter) that she will actually be watching over his Mother In-Law and is willing to pay her quite a bit more for her inconvenience. His wife is played by Mary Wonorov (who performs and looks fantastic at 67) who makes some very menacing comments on how attractive Samantha must be to the boys around campus. Assuring her that the Mother will be no trouble and “she probably wont even see her” and telling her multiple times to order a pizza, they exit.
In grand 80′s fashion, while left alone she dances around the house while wearing a bulky walkman and begins snooping around. When she finds a pictures of a very different family living in the house, things quickly get quite dark. It becomes clear that we are dealing with Satanist who need her from some sort of infernal Lunar Ritual.
This film was really fun, and I was surprised it actually worked: A horror film set in the 80′s filmed in an authentic 80′s style (16mm film stock, minimal cuts, deliberate pacing), but without being gimmicky. Recommended. Also, it worth informing younger folks and forgetful adults: In the 1980s Motherfuckers actually believed that Satanists were everywhere and killing without hesitation. Not kidding, “Satanic Panic” was a real thing.
