Review #1,107: 'House on Haunted Hill' (1959)

Horror icon Vincent Price has played the role of a wealthy eccentric countless times, usually holed up in a beautiful if macabre and mysterious castle while toying with his visitors. It's a role that fits his slightly creepy yet irresistibly likeable persona like a glove, and served him well throughout his extensive career. Before he became the wink-to-the-camera rogue in the films of Roger Corman and many others, he tended to play his parts more straight-faced, but always with a playful aura. One of his most enjoyable roles is in William Castle's House on Haunted Hill, a film that embraces cliche and camp, yet undoubtedly inspired countless haunted house movies that came in the years that followed.

Price plays a charismatic millionaire named Frederick Loren who, at the request of his wife Annabelle (Carol Ohmart), rents a supposedly haunted house to throw a party. He invites five guests - test pilot Lance Schroeder (Richard Long), psychiatrist Dr. David Trent (Alan Marshal), newspaper columnist Ruth Bridgers (Julie Mitchum), one of Loren's employees Nora Manning (Carolyn Craig), and the house's owner Watson Pritchard (Elisha Cook Jr.) - to survive the night for a $10,000 reward. They are each given a small coffin containing a gun, and are offered one last chance to leave before the doors close and lock at midnight. Needing the money and believing the spooky occurrences to be the work of cheap tricks, they all stay, but regret the decision when one of the group is found hanged.

It's incredibly basic stuff and only runs for 75 minutes, but Castle's ability to keep the audience guessing and Price's wonderful, brooding performance makes House on Haunted Hill stand out above its many imitators. Castle was known for his gimmicks in the theatre, and here employed 'Emergo', which involved a skeleton being dangled above its terrified audience. Watching it at home, the fun to be had back in the day is of course lost, but the film offers enough genuine jump frights and camp-yet-charming effects to make this an incredibly fun experience on its own. It's certainly not scary, and one scene in particular had me laughing out loud (if you've seen the film, you'll know which moment I mean), but Castle's finest movie makes for a nice alternative to the blood and guts that dominated the genre in the years to come. A silly, deliciously entertaining throwback.


Directed by: William Castle
Starring: Vincent Price, Carol Ohmart, Richard Long, Alan Marshal, Carolyn Craig, Elisha Cook Jr., Julie Mitchum
Country: USA

Rating: ****

Tom Gillespie