DIRECTOR: William Malone
MPAA RATING: R
RUNNING TIME: 93 Minutes
STUDIO: Warner Brothers
| House on Haunted Hill (1999) |
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| CAST: Geoffrey Rush, Famke Janssen, Taye Diggs, Ali Larter, Chris Kattan
DIRECTOR: William Malone MPAA RATING: R RUNNING TIME: 93 Minutes STUDIO: Warner Brothers |
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This "update" of the Price classic starts off strong, then slowly turns into slop. The first 2 minutes are truly frightening, as we're shown how the house gets its bad reputation. The storyline is simple, 5 guests are offered $1 million if they can survive a night in the house. It was an insane asylum in the 1930s, so the fear factor is presented early.
And naturally, the top-notch cast follows the scary movie rules one-by-one. They don't stick together, they wander off into other rooms, and when something bad happens, they don't run. Of course, this is all overshadowed by huges amounts of gore. A small note to directors: gore isn't scary. Still, the cast keeps the movie together, even if the dialogue is the real haunting. But it all crumbles when the climax begins, and unfortunately lasts for about 15 minutes. The movie gets built up, and just when you expect a 'pricey' payoff, you get treated to cheap special effects. Yes, the cgi in this looks worse than anything you've ever witnessed. One note, however, watch all of the credits and you'll get treated to a nice, yet freaky looking surprise. |
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