Review: The House of the Devil

Just in time for the Halloween weekend, horror film The House of the Devil opens in theaters nationwide. This film is set in the 1980s, but takes viewers back even further to the psychological horror films of the late 1960s and 1970s, including horror classics Rosemary's Baby and The Exorcist. Like its predecessors, The House of the Devil delivers horror built on slowly built tension and Satan worshippers.

Jocelin Donahue (The Burrowers) plays Sam, a pretty college sophomore who accepts a babysitting job at a remote Victorian mansion deep in the woods despite the misgivings of her best friend, played by Greta Gerwig (Hannah Take the Stairs, Baghead), and lack of an actual baby to watch. There Sam meets Mr. and Mrs. Ulman (Tom Noonan and Mary Woronov), who don't seem quite right. As the night progresses and a lunar eclipse begins, things get even worse for Sam, culminating in climatic and final scenes worthy of classic horror.

Writer/director Ti West (Trigger Man) relies on low and long shots to build the mood, which is refreshing in comparison with the over-the-top shock and awe of many contemporary splatterfest horror films. Though the soundtrack includes classic 80s tunes such as "One Thing Leads to Another" by the Fixx in a dance scene, it meshes well without making The House of the Devil come across as a cheesy 80s film.

Ti West effectively creates an authentic period film with cult actors Noonan and Woronov as the protoganists, especially Woronov's deadly and frightening stares. Jocelin Donahue's performance is convincing as a desperate college student trying to get out of her dorm room into an apartment of her own, at the risk of her own life. I won't give any spoilers, but suffice to say the last act and finale kept me on the edge of my seat. Pretty good considering I know at least one person (who will remain nameless) who couldn't handle the building tension and had to leave the theater.