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In 1971, prolific horror author and screenwriter Richard Matheson successfully created his own take on Shirley Jackson’s tale, adapted his own novel to the big screen and introduced us to The Legend Of Hell House (1973). Possessed by the malevolent spirit, Tanner attempts to destroy it, thinking that it will harm the spirits in the house, but she is prevented from doing serious damage. She enters the chapel, "the unholy heart" of the house, in an attempt to warn the spirits, but she is crushed by a falling crucifix. Fischer wanders the house afterwards, attempting to sense psychic energy; in astonishment, he declares the place "completely clear!" But violent psychic activity soon resumes, and Barrett is killed. There’s a particular scene when the group enters the house that belongs on the all-time best horror camera shots list.
For the sake of your sanity, pray it isn't true!
There is a certain tendency to rely on shock effect and the film never has any scenes as startling and effective as the famous door battering in The Haunting but Hough creates a tense and uneasy atmosphere from the outset. Alan Hume’s photography – with shots reflected off rotating records and entire rooms seen in the curved reflection of a polished silver teapot – is marvellously stylish. Roddy McDowall, who began his long career as a child actor in the late thirties, should need no introduction. McDowall continued his career successfully into adulthood, but it was usually in character roles, notably in heavy makeup as various chimpanzee characters in four of the five original Planet Of The Apes movies (1968 to 1973) and in the 1974 television series that followed. He was frequently a guest star on television shows, appearing in such series as the original Twilight Zone, The Eleventh Hour, Buck Rogers In The 25th Century, Night Gallery, The Invaders, Fantasy Island, Columbo, and Quantum Leap. He played the villain Bookworm in the camp sixties Batman television series and had an acclaimed recurring role as The Mad Hatter in Batman The Animated Series.
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The Legend of Hell House emerges far more strongly as a story than The Haunting did. Legendary genre screenwriter Richard Matheson has simplified his original book Hell House (1971). Primarily, Matheson pares down the book’s shock excesses, something that would have brought the film into the domain of The Exorcist (1973), which came out six months later the same year.
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Set in the eerie and mysterious Belasco House, the film follows a team of paranormal investigators as they attempt to unravel the dark secrets of this haunted mansion. The Mount Everest of haunted houses, it was once the home of Emeric Belasco (Michael Gough), a millionaire infamous for all manner of excessive perversions – sadism, bestiality, necrophilia and cannibalism. A physicist (Clive Revill) and his wife (Gayle Hunnicutt) and two mediums (Roddy McDowall and Pamela Franklin) are hired by an eccentric to prove the existence of life after death, and Hell House is to be the proving ground.
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He taunts Belasco, declaring him a "son of a whore", and that he was no "roaring giant", but instead more likely a "funny little dried-up bastard" who fooled everyone about his alleged height. Even as objects begin to hurl themselves at Fischer, he continues to defy the entity, and insults Belasco's physical stature. Fischer then concentrates, and a stained-glass partition in the chapel shatters, revealing a hidden door.
Film Review: The Legend Of Hell House (
This includes Barrett’s wife Ann and mediums Florence Tanner and Benjamin Fischer, the sole survivor of the previous investigation. Once inside however, the house begins to prey on the team and their individual weaknesses. A physicist, his wife and two mediums are hired to investigate the Belasco House, where 27 guests had inexplicably died in 1927, along with most of a team of paranormal investigators that wa... Barrett, Tanner, and Fischer are hired by dying millionaire, William Reinhardt Deutsch, to investigate the possibility of life after death for a week. To this end, they must enter the infamous Belasco House in Maine, regarded as the most haunted house in the world.
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Works based on his novels and stories are The Omega Man (1971) from his I Am Legend, the afterlife fantasy What Dreams May Come (1998), the fine ghost story Stir of Echoes (1999), I Am Legend (2007), The Box (2009) and Real Steel (2011). Aging millionaire Rudolf Deutsch wants to be assured of the existence of life after death. He offers a group of parapsychologists and mediums £100,000 each if they will investigate the notoriously haunted Belasco mansion, which has been nicknamed Hell House. A previous attempt to explore the house sent all but one of the investigating team insane. A new team is assembled under parapsychological researcher Chris Barrett.
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(As a result, The Legend of Hell House comes out as a far more intelligent and subtly effective film than The Exorcist). Clive Revill, the physicist, who attempts to clear the house of its evil, Pamela Franklin, the mental medium and Roddy McDowall the survivor of the previous incursion, are all first-rate. Fans of "The Legend of Hell House" and haunted house stories in general should have no qualms about picking up a copy.
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The intricate relationships between the characters add a layer of complexity to the story, as they navigate their own personal demons while confronting the malevolent forces within the house. In this article, we will dive deep into the world of The Legend of Hell House and uncover 37 fascinating facts about this iconic movie. From its production details and behind-the-scenes anecdotes to its impact on the horror genre, we will explore everything you need to know about this chilling cinematic experience. A varied team of investigators (sceptic, medium, survivor…) descends on the ominous ‘Belasco House’ to confront the possibility of life after death. While I’m a huge fan of Matheson’s novel, I had never seen The Legend of Hell House until celebrating its 50th birthday. Now, I’m kicking myself for waiting so long to see such an innovative film and obvious inspiration in the haunted house subgenre.
Piece-by-piece the terrifying secret of Hell House is unraveled, leading the survivors to the film’s final, shocking climactic revelation. The Legend of Hell House is a 1973 gothic supernatural horror film directed by John Hough, and starring Pamela Franklin, Roddy McDowall, Clive Revill, and Gayle Hunnicutt. It follows a group of researchers who spend a week in the former home of a sadist and murderer, where previous paranormal investigators were inexplicably killed. Its screenplay was written by American author Richard Matheson, based upon his 1971 novel Hell House.
In addition to competent direction and a well-written screenplay, the film also benefits from a strong cast. He needn’t say much about the life-changing impact of his last visit to the Belasco House for the viewer to know it still haunts him. Ben usually speaks in a near-whisper, with a monotone delivery; giving the impression he’s a hollowed-out shell of his former self. However, it does draw inspiration from real-life haunted house legends and paranormal experiences. May feel slow to those accustomed to the hyper horror movies of today. The house is believed to be haunted by the victims of Belasco's twisted and sadistic desires.
With the room now open, Fischer activates Barrett's machine a second time, and he and Ann leave the house, hoping that Barrett and Florence will guide Belasco to the afterlife without fear. If you’d like to chat more about under-seen and underrated films, feel free to hit me up with your thoughts on Twitter, Threads, or Instagram. When Dr. Barrett asks if he has anything he’d like to share, Ben replies, “What’s to tell? It almost succeeded.” He says those words with a detached look in his eyes and nearly no inflection. Also effective is the way the Belasco house brings Gothic vibes that harken back to Hammer’s heyday.
Unlike haunted houses, Hell houses focus on real-life situations and the effects of sin or the fate of unrepentant sinners in the afterlife. Richard Matheson’s screenplay (which he adapts from his novel Hell House) conjures a terrifying antagonist that plays well against the eerie atmosphere Hough establishes. Emeric Belasco is revealed to have been a despicable man in life and seems to have somehow continued that distinction in death.
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