I don't know what movie some of the previous reviewers were watching, or exactly what standard they want to hold a horror movie to (Orwell???), but House of Fears was a great movie! Let me throw in my one caveat: FOR WHAT IT WAS. We're talking about a low budget horror film that was made with no well-known talent at the time. Expecting to see Oscar-worthy material is just being dense. But there was a lot to like about this movie.
First, are there really that many original stories left for horror movie setups? No, so what you do is take a known plot line and try to throw some originality in how you present it. You've got a basic haunted house story here, but they mix things up with the characters - two step-sisters who hate each other but who enter the haunted house together when one begs the other not to ruin the night for her. Will they bond together to survive, or will their hatred lead one to abandon the other? Also, instead of a maniac doing all the killing, it's an ancient artifact that is causing things to come to life. It finds out your worst fear and then kills you with it. (Or tries to.) Again, not original but when you put the two things together it works out nicely.
The comment about the lack of gore was also an absurd one. This movie does not bill itself as a slasher flick. I really enjoyed the fact that there is suspense and setup before each killing. And really - you'd have to have 40 teenagers sneaking into the haunted house to satisfy the blood lust of some of these so-called horror fans! Talk about an unrealistic setup! I've seen a lot of low to mid-budget films that were flat-out unwatchable. You turn them off after 15 minutes and berate yourself for wasting the money and the 15 minutes. Not only is House of Fears watchable, it's a darn good movie! And the lesser-known talent in this movie is now becoming much more recognizable. They've gone on to supporting roles in other films and TV. You'll enjoy watching House of Fears and remembering years later that some of tomorrow's well-known actors were in it.
First, are there really that many original stories left for horror movie setups? No, so what you do is take a known plot line and try to throw some originality in how you present it. You've got a basic haunted house story here, but they mix things up with the characters - two step-sisters who hate each other but who enter the haunted house together when one begs the other not to ruin the night for her. Will they bond together to survive, or will their hatred lead one to abandon the other? Also, instead of a maniac doing all the killing, it's an ancient artifact that is causing things to come to life. It finds out your worst fear and then kills you with it. (Or tries to.) Again, not original but when you put the two things together it works out nicely.
The comment about the lack of gore was also an absurd one. This movie does not bill itself as a slasher flick. I really enjoyed the fact that there is suspense and setup before each killing. And really - you'd have to have 40 teenagers sneaking into the haunted house to satisfy the blood lust of some of these so-called horror fans! Talk about an unrealistic setup! I've seen a lot of low to mid-budget films that were flat-out unwatchable. You turn them off after 15 minutes and berate yourself for wasting the money and the 15 minutes. Not only is House of Fears watchable, it's a darn good movie! And the lesser-known talent in this movie is now becoming much more recognizable. They've gone on to supporting roles in other films and TV. You'll enjoy watching House of Fears and remembering years later that some of tomorrow's well-known actors were in it.