House – Two Stories: Blu-ray Review
The Movie:
In the original House, William Katt (Carrie) stars as Roger Cobb, a horror novelist struggling to pen his next bestseller. When he inherits his aunt’s creaky old mansion, Roger decides that he’s found the ideal place in which to get some writing done. Unfortunately, the house’s monstrous supernatural residents have other ideas. Meanwhile, House II: The Second Story sees young Jesse (Arye Gross) moving into an old family mansion where his parents were mysteriously murdered years before. Plans for turning the place into a party pad are soon thwarted by the appearance of Jesse’s mummified great-great-grandfather, his mystical crystal skull and the zombie cowboy who’ll stop at nothing to lay his hands on it!
This is definitely a very unique set so in this case I’ll be reviewing these films as a whole. It’s been a VERY long time since I’ve seen these films but the one thing that I remember as a kid was that they scared the crap out of me so much but at the same time I fell in love with them. These movies were literally some of the first to get me into the horror genre. Now after watching them after so many years they are way less scary and more in line with a comedic horror film (kind of like Evil Dead 2) which I have grown to appreciate more and more over the years. Both films are full of gore, mystery and bit of comedy thrown in (sometimes not on purpose). All of that combines into a pair of films that are entertaining on such a different level and I think that only true horror fans will “get” them. Out of both movies I do have to choose the original one as my favorite and that’s mainly because it’s a tad more darker and less comedic than the sequel. Are they the best movies in the world? No, but they are entertaining as hell and if you’re a fan of 80’s horror then you’re definitely going to LOVE both of these movies. The one thing that I will say about this set is that the attention to detail of the packaging is super impressive and the extra hardcover booklet included is one of the best that I’ve seen. If you remember these films and are looking to revisit them then this is without a doubt the set to pick up and you won’t be disappointed. 7/10
Special Features:
House:
Ding Dong, You’re Dead! – A really fantastic feature that goes in depth about the film and also includes interviews with the cast and crew.
Vintage Making Of – An interesting Making Of feature that looks like an old school TV show.
Audio Commentary with Ethan Wiley, William Katt, Sean Cunningham and Steve Miner
House II: The Second Story
It’s Getting Weirder! – A very similar feature like the one for the first film. Very good and runtime is almost an hour.
Vintage EPK – Again, very much like the one from the first film.
Audio Commentary with Ethan Wiley and Sean Cunningham
