5
(general supernatural)
6
(skeletons, blood, and murder)
7
(one of the best old horror flicks of all time)
The Vincent Price / William Castle classic "House on Haunted Hill" has long been one of my favorite black-and-white horror movies. This is Price and director Castle at their absolute best! Oh, how I would have loved to be in the theater with skeletons flying around during the movie!
Eccentric millionaire Frederick Loren and his wife don’t get along. She has planned a party, but he’s taken the reigns and turned it into a creepy fiasco. Rather than friends he has invited several carefully selected people in need of money, trapped them in a haunted house, and given them weapons. Soon people start dying and disappearing. Maybe Loren harbors some homicidal impulses?
To say much more about the plot would spoil the fun. It does not take conventional plot steps nor end in an expected way. It blurs the lines between where the human element ends and the supernatural begins. Are there ghosts at all? You could argue no, yet human forces can’t possibly explain away everything that happens can they? Perhaps some just know how to use that to their advantage. I’ll let you decide for yourself.
Some of the high-pitched screaming from young Nora gets annoying, but I have few complaints otherwise. The effects are quite good for their age. The acting does boarder on campy at times (usually when there’s too much high-pitched screaming involved), but most of it is quite well done. Vincent is the main attraction, but he’s not the only one worth seeing. Carol Ohmart is as venomous as she is beautiful and probably the best of the cast behind Mr. Price. Carolyn Craig might be over the top with the cute innocence bit but is still delightful. I could keep going through the cast of 9 people, but suffice it to say I don't dislike anyone. There’s not a moment I find dull. Having seen it countless times I still sit glued to the TV at every showing (I watch it at least once a year at Halloween).
Morality
There are some creepy moments including severed heads, skeletons, ghostly visions, unexplained blood, and tales of gruesome murder. Mostly the violence is implied, but make no mistake not everyone lives to see the end.
There is no strong language or sexuality at all.
Several of the characters turn to alcohol to calm their nerves., and there's a fair amount of smoking if any of that bothers you.
Spirituality
While there is a supernatural element here there is also a question of what phenomena we see could be truly supernatural. That's part of the fun of the story deciding your yourself what the true explanations of the various ghostly moments are. This story involves dark characters many of whom aren't beyond adultery, murder, and even psychological torture. Even most of the innocent victims have troublesome vices which is what makes them ideal for a strange party involving free money. How far will a depraved mind go to get what it wants?
Final Thoughts
If you like black-&-white horror movies even a little this is worth checking out. Vincent Price is one of my favorite classic actors, and this is one of my favorite works of his. Go watch it now!
Buying Guide
"House on Haunted Hill," being a fantastic movie and public domain to boot, results in a hauntingly vast variety of releases through which collectors must dig.
There are a ton of stand-alone DVD's and multi-packs with various other movies that offer a whole lot of nothing special. I'll cover a few of these in detail: a 50 pack called “Horror Classics,” a 20 pack called “Chilling,” and a digitally remastered version. But I've seen more versions than these and have yet to find one that is vastly superior.
Some other notable ones are a colorized release, a Warner Home Video widescreen version, and a 50th Anniversary edition which I'll talk about in terms of what I've heard about them. There are some Blu-ray options, but they are not HD.
Here are a few more of my researched details. If you want to get right to the direct DVD comparisons jump down to the next section.
I'll start with the 50th Anniversary Special Edition. with a brand new widescreen transfer!! because, let's face it, that sounds fantastic if you're hunting for a good version of the film. Add in 90 minutes of “mind-blowing” bonuses and you've got yourself a real winner, or so you might think. The new transfer might be decent quality (although reviewers say it's no better than any other), but even though it is in widescreen it is not the original aspect ratio (this is 1.66, the original is 1.85). What's more is that these guys felt the need to stamp their logo all over the title cards which is unforgivable no matter how good the transfer might be. I didn't see an audio spec so it's probably still mono or they would have advertised it more. Extras include a modern look at the real house, a “surprise” William Castle TV spot, an original trailer, a profile of Carol Ohmart, some Vincent Price moments, and lots of previews. A few different reviews I read say that almost all of these aren't worth the time or effort. There are no chapter stops, either.
The "Old Dark House" and "Ultimate Horror Classics" Blu collections simply use the storage capacity of the Blu to hold a lot of movies. There is no HD involved here.
The Warner Video release is notable because it is the only one I saw offering the movie in its 1.85 widescreen ratio. There is no mention of remastering, though, and no comments on the quality of this specific release.
Lastly is the colorized version which does also offer the original black-and-white. Otherwise it's the same as all the others.
Beyond that there is no mention of remastering or extras, no others listing widescreen ratio, and no audio specs given beyond the typical mono.
Final Recommendation:
The lesson today is just because someone slaps an “anniversary” tag on a release doesn't make it good. I got excited about that release until I read the reviews of it, now I'll be avoiding it. The widescreen Warner disc is tempting just so I can see it in the original aspect ratio. Otherwise take your pick. The remastered GoodTimes version is a little better than others I've seen but not so much so that you'll notice it without a side-by-side comparison unless you are a serious cinephile.
First in my list is the GoodTimes DVD which is digitally remastered.
Video
1.33:
As with most prints it is "full-screen" which really means pan-&-scan. There is still a little bit of trash, but it is a fairly clear and sharp image compared to others of these old movies. It's still soft and fuzzy compared to modern HD.
Audio
2.0 mono:
There is little to no white noise, it has good levels, and it has a better than average mix. The others are not bad, but this one is marginally better.
Packaging
Standard plastic case.
An insert features a leggy image and a chapters list.
The interface is just a still image and plain menu options but does feature an artistic and original image.
Extras
There are none.
Next up is the 50 "Horror Classics" version.
Video
1.33:
This, too, is the TV standard "full-screen” ratio. There is minor trash with an image that is a little fuzzy but not annoyingly so.
Audio
2.0 mono:
The sound has minor white noise but is decently clear and has a better mix than a lot of these old movies have.
Packaging
This disc is housed in a cardboard sleeve contained in a Velcro-fastened box. Later copies are repackaged in plastic.
Extras
Still no extras.
Up last is the 20 pack called “Chilling.”
Video
1.33:
This "full-screen" presentation is pretty much the same as the description above but grainier and a little fuzzier.
Audio
2.0 mono:
The sound doesn't have much white noise, I only noticed any at all during a few specific scenes. Otherwise it's about the same as the 50 pack.
Packaging
The disc comes in a paper sleeve that lives in a plastic case. You can get more details about the set as a whole by checking out the Chilling (20 pack) guide.
What's notable about this print is that it's missing a small portion of the beginning. If you don't know it you won't miss it, but as soon as you realize it you can't call yourself a fan if it doesn't bug you to the point that you want to track down the DVD guys and ask them “WHY? WHY WOULD YOU DO SUCH A THING??”
…...Excuse me.....
…...I'm better now..........
Extras
Still a whole lot of nothing.