House of 1000 Corpses (UK DVD)
Starring Bill Moseley, Sheri Moon Zombie, Sid Haig, Chris Hardwick
Directed by Rob Zombie
Distributed by Fabulous Films Ltd
Looking back on House of 1000 Corpses the whole project feels like a true oddity. It was a grimy low-budget horror film funded by Universal back in 2000, who later got cold feet and shelved it because they felt it was too nasty. It languished for three years before finally being unleashed, becoming a minor hit and spawning a sequel. The cast includes a pre-fame Rainn Wilson, Walt Goggins and Chris Hardwick, and it’s got all the Rob Zombie trimmings; an ensemble of cult actors, rednecks, gore, nods to seventies cinema and around a million f-bombs.
It’s basically a big potpourri of Zombie’s influences, and clearly the work of a first-time filmmaker eager to put his vision onscreen. Despite the film’s cult status it never quite gels together, and for all its ambition it’s kind of a big muddle. Even Zombie himself thinks so, bluntly labeling it “…a calamitous mess” in one interview.
The setup finds two couples getting stranded in the middle of nowhere and getting taken in by a weird family – who naturally turn out to be psychotic killers. House of 1000 Corpses is basically Zombie’s homage to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, right down to a bizarre dinner table scene. It never feels like a story though; just a collection of scenes and ideas loosely stitched together. The tone is an awkward mash-up between gritty and cartoony, where one moment Bill Moseley will deliver a terrifying monologue to camera, and the next he’ll reveal he’s turned a victim into a mermaid.
While the acting can vary, it has to be said Sid Haig and Moseley steal the show, and it’s easy to see how their characters became genre icons in their own right. None of the victims are particularly likable though, so it’s hard to feel much sympathy when the torture kicks in. Zombie actually explains his reasoning for this in a bonus feature on the disc, stating audiences only care about the monster and not the victims; he may have a point, but it’s kind of important to feel something for the people being chased, or otherwise the experience feels pretty hollow.
That’s not to say the movie is without merits. Whatever his faults as a screenwriter Zombie has a great visual eye, and House of 1000 Corpses has some striking imagery throughout, especially in the climactic descent into Doctor Satan’s lair. While it’s rarely frightening there are some intense horror sequences sprinkled in there, and the pacing is relentless.
Ultimately, the best thing that came out of House of 1000 Corpses was The Devil’s Rejects, and it feels like Zombie had to get the former of his system so he could make the latter. If you’re a fan of the film or haven’t seen it recently, this DVD re-release has a nice transfer and a decent selection of extras, including an informative – if slightly dry – director’s commentary.
Special Features:
• Making Of
• Behind-the-Scenes
• Director’s Commentary
• “Tiny Fucked A Stump!”
• Casting
• Trailers
• Still Gallery
• Rehearsals
• Interviews
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Film
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Special Features
Categorized:Reviews
