Rob Zombie’s directorial debut is like a journey into hell on dvd. I recall when this movie made it’s theatrical run, and Sid Haig was outside of my local theater passing out tickets to a horror convention that he was signing autographs at. It was hilarious, and I didn’t know who he was until I sat down and watched the movie.
The movie has a simple premise, a group of young adults are traveling the nation looking for weird and spooky tourist traps. They stumble upon Captain Spaulding’s museum of weird stuff and chicken, alongside The Murder Ride. In this ride they learn about Doctor Satan, and after some questions find out that the Doctor Satan house is just down the road, so of course, they must explore it.
Meanwhile, there are a group of cheerleaders missing, and locked up in a dingy garage somewhere. We don’t hear more about this until later, but it plays as a key turning point later on in the movie. The beginning of the film sets up for what kind of language and violence is to come, when a failed robbery turns into a hilarious introduction to Captain Spaulding. (My Favorite of All Clowns)
The movie starts to feel a little recycled, and then the horror starts. If you’re a fan of Gore, you’re going to be in love with how its presented here. Skin peeling, guts exploding, head shots, ax cuts, surgical procedures, zombies, and even occult rituals pour out of the crevices of this film to make quite a cesspool of interactive fun.
The ending is also a great tribute to the 1980’s scare secenes, but I won’t deliberate more information than that. You’ll love it, that’s all I will tell you about that.
Here is a trailer for House of 1,000 Corpses:
Alright, so you either hate this movie and hate Rob Zombie, or you love this movie and get all the references that long time horror movie fan Rob Zombie threw in there. If you’re a fan of horror you’ll catch all the references to movies like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3, Friday the 13th, and dare I say…A Nightmare on Elm Street, oh and I’m reaching for this one, but Toxic Avenger is also summoned in spirit, if you really pay attention. The overall tone of this film is dark, and it’s rainy. There are a lot of cut scenes that you don’t really know how to explain, but you don’t have to, you just strap in and get ready for a journey into what the radio spots call “Hell”.
Rob Zombie may have got a lot of heat for Halloween, and when I reviewed the movie Halloween, I didn’t think it was as bad as people said it was. House of 1,000 Corpses is a great entry into the horror genre for both nostalgia’s sake and horror on its own. If you’re a long time horror fan, rejoice that this is not a Japanese remake of some kind, it is definitely NOT pg-13 and is definitely worth its weight. I admit, the first time I saw this movie I didn’t really like it, but it grows on you, like the fungus or disease in Cabin Fever (a favorite of mine). House of 1,000 Corpses is not the greatest, but it is heavy and hardcore enough to win this horror movie buff over, with enough blood, guts, and glory. Try it on for size, and enjoy the ride!
Rob Zombie as a person is a load of old rubbish but at least the films he makes are superb and he isn`t British so those are 2 small mercys for which we must be grateful.
ReplyDeleteI like his style, he's also got a great horror dvd and vhs collection
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