The House By the Cemetery (1981)

A young family moves from their cramped New York City apartment to a spacious new home in New England. But this is no ordinary house in the country: the previous owner was the deranged Dr. Freudstein whose monstrous human experiments have left a legacy of bloody mayhem. Now someone - or something - is alive in the basement and home sweet home is about to become a horrific hell on earth.Catriona MacColl (City Of The Living Dead) Paolo Malco (The New York Ripper) Ania Pieroni Tenebre) and Dagmar Lassander (Forbidden Photos Of A Lady Above Suspicion) star in this outrageous Italian shocker from Lucio Fulci 'The Godfather of Gore.' Considered to be one of the master's last great films The House By The Cemetery is presented complete and uncut featuring a mind-blowing onslaught of throat-ripping skull-knifing maggot-spewing and more!System Requirements:Run Time: 87 mins Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: HORROR UPC: 827058109598 Manufacturer No: 1095 Product Description

Fantastic supernatural Italian shocker!

When a family moves from New York City to a New England town where they found the perfect place to stay, however their young child has a psychic power that enables him to see a ghost that warns him of the terrible things that happened there once. Long ago, a mad scientist named Dr. Freudstein conducted horrific experiments on people as he murdered them in the basement and used them, now a curse brings him back to life as a ravenous murderous zombie that kills as he seeks new blood and more people to kill and experiment on with ghostly events happening.

Ghastly, unique and stylish supernatural zombie/haunted house thriller from Lucio Fulci is one of his best movies yet. Sure it lacks coherence but this movie delivers dark atmosphere, great scares, gory sequences like the skull stabbing and Bat mutilation sequences, and a chilling music score. I love how this movie combines both the zombie and haunted house movie genres especially influence by HP Lovecraft into one movie thanks to the magic of Fulci whom also makes a cameo in this motion picture, this is one of my all time favorite scary movies ever and highly recommended for fans of the genres but not for the squeamish.

This DVD is a re-issue of the Anchor Bay edition which has a great transfer and good sound with fine extras like an easter egg, TV Spot, Trailer, Bio of Fulci and poster-and-still gallery.

Also recommended: "House (1986)", "The Others", "The Shining", "Re-Animator", "Pet Sematary", "City of the Living Dead", "Demons 1 & 2", "Evil Dead 1 & 2", "Dawn of the Dead (1978)", "Making Contact (a.k.a. Joey)", "The Devil's Backbone", "Beetlejuice", "From Dusk Till Dawn", "Suspiria", "Dagon", "From Beyond", "Zombie (a.k.a. Zombi 2)", "The New York Ripper", "Versus", "Let Sleeping Corpses Lie (aka Living Dead at The Manchester Morgue)", "Poltergeist", "Burnt Offerings", "The Amityville Horror (1979 and 2005)", "Day of the Dead (1985)", "Burial Ground: The Nights of Terror", "Cemetery Man", "Phenomena (a.k.a. creepers)", "Hellraiser 1 & 2", "Candyman", "Blood Diner', "An American Werewolf in London", "A Nightmare on Elm Street", "Event Horizon", "Maniac (1980)", "The Haunting (1963)", "House on Haunted Hill (1958 and 1999)", "Dead Alive (a.k.a. Braindead)", "Final Destination Series", "The Gate", "House of 1000 Corpses", "The Innocents", "The Legend of Hell House", "Inferno" and "The Beyond". August 15, 2008

So you liked Zombie

I got into Fulci after watching Zombie. Although this movie doesn't really have zombies in it, I really enjoyed it a lot. Fulci is a great director and this movie did not disappoint me one bit. I have watched many of his movies and I like Zombie the best and this movie is my second favorite. It has an incredible dreamlike quality that is a Fulci trademark. The blurring of reality with make-believe allows the viewer to once again tap into the highly developed imagination that we all have as children when what we imagine is sometimes even more real than what actually exists.
This movie is actually scary in a way that even Zombie isn't. The final debacle is so creepy that it really, really affected me as I was watching it.
The music, as with many of Fulci's movies, matches the script perfectly and is very, very creepy.
If you liked Zombie or the Beyond you will definitely want to watch this film by maestro Fulci. August 14, 2008

Fantastic Ending More Than Makes Up For Any Flaws

Sometimes I get in the mood for a good old fashioned blood bash. I don't mean something as pasturized as the latest "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" remakes. I don't want something loaded down with CGI effects like "300". I want good old latex and red-corn-syrup blood-letting. Something that could only have come out of Italy in the 1980's. Usually when I'm in this mood I will turn to Fulci's "Gates of Hell", (blood by the bucketful) but I've worn that flick out in recent years so I turned to "House by the Cemetery". The movie starts right out with a great splatter of the red stuff and we are off and runnin'! The first thing you will notice about this movie is the haunting score. It's fantastic, one of the best elements of the film. The second thing you will notice is the lousy vocal dub for "Bob"??? Not sure who or what is providing that voice....but it is pretty jarring when first heard to say the least. Finally you will notice that "House" actually serves up more suspense than oozing red stuff as it plays out. There are some pretty chilling scenes sprinkled throughout the film, and the final 15 minutes is fantastic! The blood does flow, don't get me wrong, there are several scenes to satisfy the gorehound, but the emphasis on suspense and the creepiness the underlies the entire film really make the gore secondary. If you can get past "Bob", then you will really enjoy this film. February 5, 2008

A Not Unsuccessful Lovecraftian Tribute

This is the third in a loose trilogy of films by Italian master of the macabre Lucio Fulci set in New England that evoke the uncanny and cosmic terrors of H.P. Lovecraft. The other two films "City of the Living Dead" and "The Beyond" are quite a bit better than "House by the Cemetery", but that doesn't mean this film is totally without merit. At times Fulci succeeds very well in creating an atmosphere of dread and fear, and the film is not without some subtle moments of terror, due mainly to an eerie soundtrack and a couple of creepy kids. But fans of Fulci and Italian horror cinema in general are not interested in the type of subtle scares one might find in English ghost stories; instead his films are marked by unusual levels of graphic violence. Although this film is not without its moments (throats ripped out, maggot ridden bodies and decapitation), the violence seems quite muted compared to other Fulci films. Fulci is perhaps aiming too strongly for the atmosphere of Lovecraft, and subsequently forgets to invest in his film the graphic and absurdly violent scenes which have afforded his work a cult following. The film as is usually the case with Fulci makes little sense and is full of continuity errors, its difficult to know whether this is down to bad editing, or an intentional effort to create an uncanny world in which time and space are confused, personally I prefer the latter possibility. There has always been something dream like and hallucinatory about Italian horror cinema and this film doesn't disappoint on that level. By combing Freud and Frankenstein in the name of the films ostensible monster/zombie, the rotting cadaver of the once great scientist Dr. Freudstein provides an interesting connection between psychoanalysis and the scientist playing god. In light of Fulci's career post "House by the Cemetery", this has to be considered one of his last decent efforts.

This DVD re-issue is by Blue Underground, who seem to have acquired some of the titles of Anchor Bay's back catalogue for re-issue. My only main grumble is with the audio, which is particularly tinny, other than that this is a good reasonably priced package. May 18, 2007

A movie I like a lot more than I should

The House by the Cemetery was released during the height of Lucio Fulci's career. From between 1979-1983 is the era Fulci will forever be known for. While he had some solid movies prior to that it's really the 79-83 era is what he will be remembered for. The House by the Cemetery might be one of the weaker ones from that era, but yet there is something strangely compelling about this movie. Maybe it's the fact the movie is so incoherent at times and that it's sort of laughable. Or maybe it's the unintentional comedy like the bat attack scene.

Lucio Fulci in my opinion was a director who was able to build some good suspense and tension due to his visual style. Even in some of his lesser movies he was able to make something out of nothing even if he was unable to maintain it. In The House by the Cemetery some of that can be found. But the biggest downfall of the movie is the really poor dubbing for Giovanni Frezza who will forever be known to hardcore horror fans as Bob. Apparently he was dubbed by a woman, but regardless the dubbing was just bad. Any scene he was in was comedy gold. This, in a way adds to the movie, but also takes away from scenes that might have played out better with some better dubbing.

Lucio Fulci was a filmmaker who can be really hit or miss and sometimes even in the same movie. The House by the Cemetery is one of those movies. The opening scene was quite effective; the set up was great and it had a creepy feel to it. The pacing here is slow; after the opening kill scene we don't get another for a good 40-min. The movie is filled with a lot of talk and a lot of scenes that never really go anywhere despite a build up with the characters and some interesting ideas.

Lucio Fulci seems to be building up something with some of the characters, but yet it never comes to be. The babysitter Anne seems to have some kind of big revelation coming, but it never happens. Any scene she is in has this weirdness to it, but yet nothing comes to be. What makes this movie so inserting is it's sort of a zombie movie due to the Dr. Freudstein character, but it's also sort of a slasher movie and than throw in some supernatural haunting. The House by the Cemetery had an interesting idea, but sadly the movie is so incoherent with nothing really explained everything is sort of lost.

The House by the Cemetery easily rates as one of Fulci's most incoherent movies; nothing really makes any sense at all nothing is really explained. Bottom line is what little plot we get is very messy. The screenplay was written by Giorgio Mariuzzo, Lucio Fulci and Dardano Sacchetti. If the other 2 writers sound familiar they should. Both have worked with Lucio Fulci several times with Sacchetti being the man responsible for several of Fulci's more popular titles.

While Fulci manages to build some suspense due to the messy plot and poor dubbing it's hard to sustain it and the scenes start to become funny for the wrong reasons. There was some decent suspense and in my opinion the final act is actually quite solid. Like I said Lucio Fulci was the type of director who could be very hit or miss and sometimes even in the same movie. Gore-hounds though fear not, when there is a gore scene Fulci doesn't hold back at all. While some dub this his goriest I have to disagree. The gore is excellent done by the always reliable and much underrated Giannetto De Rossi. Not Fulci's goriest, but when there is gore it will please the fans.

Most of the cast are Fulci regulars; many of them have done several movies with Fulci with Katherine MacColl probably being the most well known. Despite all the flaws of The House by the Cemetery I couldn't help, but really enjoy the movie. As I stated earlier sure the movie is incoherent nothing makes sense. Some of the characters seem to have some kind of revelation ready to come out and it never does. But I was really enjoying this movie. Maybe it was the flaws that make this movie so much fun?

The look of the movie was excellent; like I said before Fulci had a great visual style and along with cinematographer Sergio Salvati who worked with Lucio Fulci quite a few times really create a great look for the movie. There are a lot of scenes that have a great creepy feel and the overall tone of the movie is well done. The House by the Cemetery featured a lot of people from past Lucio Fulci movies, which helps the movie, but one would expect a bit more seeing as these people done some great work with Fulci.

In many ways this is one of Lucio Fulci's weaker efforts from this era and it's also one of his strongest at the same time. The House by the Cemetery has a great and creepy feel, but the plot is incoherent and revelations that seem to be waiting to come out never do. And the ending is also a bit complicated. But despite all this I highly enjoyed this movie. Fulci purists will probably get enjoyment out of this so if you like his work I would say this movie is worth seeking out. For those who don't like Fulci's work this probably won't be the movie to change your opinion of him.

My review for House by the Cemetery may not sound positive at all, but I did enjoy the movie a lot more than maybe I should have. Despite all the flaws there is just something really creepy about House by the Cemetery. As stated before in many ways this is one of Fulci's weaker and stronger efforts.
May 13, 2007

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