House on Haunted Hill (1959)

Calificación de los usuarios:

6.8/10   

Director:

William Castle

Guionista:

Robb White (writer)

Fecha de Lanzamiento:

17 febrero 1959 (USA)

Género:

Drama | Horror | Suspenso

Frase comercial:

See it with someone with warm hands!

Plot:

Frederick Loren has invited five strangers to a party of a lifetime. He is offering each of them $10,000 if they can stay the night in a house...

Plot Keywords:

Party | Murder | Eccentric | Haunted House | Caretaker

Comentarios de los usuarios:

Enjoyable campy fun.

Reparto

Vincent Price	...	Frederick Loren
Carolyn Craig	...	Nora Manning
Richard Long	...	Lance Schroeder
Elisha Cook Jr.	...	Watson Pritchard (as Elisha Cook)
Carol Ohmart	...	Annabelle Loren
Alan Marshal	...	Dr. David Trent
Julie Mitchum	...	Ruth Bridgers
Leona Anderson	...	Mrs. Slydes
Howard Hoffman	...	Jonas Slydes

También conocida como:

The House on Haunted Hill (USA) (trailer title)
Mansión diabólica (Venezuela) [es]
Mansión siniestra (Argentina) [es]

Duración:

75 min

País:

USA

Idioma:

Inglés

Color:

Negro y Blanco

Relación de Aspecto:

1.85 : 1

Sonido:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Clasificación:

Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | West Germany:18 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M (DVD rating) | Australia:PG (original rating) | Finland:(Banned) (1963) | Norway:16 (1960) | Sweden:15 | UK:12 (video rating) (2003) | UK:X (original rating) | USA:Unrated

Locaciones de Filmación:

Ennis-Brown House - 2655 Glendower Avenue, Los Feliz, Los Angeles, California, USA

Compañía:

William Castle Productions

Trivialidades:

The large grosses for this film were noticed by Alfred Hitchcock. This led him to create his own low-budget horror film--Psycho (1960).

Errores:

Continuidad: Frederick Loren (Vincent Price) is nearly one foot taller than his wife, Annabelle (Carol Ohmart). Later on the skeleton (which is supposed to be Frederick's), which corners Annabelle by the acid pit, is clearly much shorter than her.

Citas:

Frederick Loren: [starts shaking up bottle of champagne]
Annabelle Loren: Why do you always do that? It spoils the champagne.
Frederick Loren: It might explode.
Annabelle Loren: Never does.
Frederick Loren: Can you guarantee that?
[aims champagne bottle at Annabelle]
Annabelle Loren: That isn't funny Frederick.
Frederick Loren: Make a good headline, playboy kills wife with champagne cork.

Conexiones de Película:

Apareció en Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story (2007)

Enjoyable campy fun.

Of the many William Castle directed shockers of the '50's and '60's, this one is probably the most traditional in terms of being a "ghost story". The set up is irresistible (derivative of "Ten Little Indians" in a way.) Five unrelated people are chosen to spend the night in what is purported to be a haunted house. Several murders have taken place in the house in the past. If the participants stay the night, their host (Price) will give them each $10,000 (a nice chunk of change in 1958!) The house is surprisingly non-Gothic on the outside. It more closely resembles a piece of the 1937 "Lost Horizon" set. Inside, it has the more expected old woodwork, creaky doors, curtained alcoves, etc... Price is wonderful, as always, as the sardonic, mysterious host. His wife is played by a former beauty queen (Ohmart) who is attractive, if a bit frosty. They have some interesting repartee which reveals their mistrust and hatred for one another. The guests include leading man-type Long, ingenue Craig, nervous Cook, crusty Mitchum and debonair Marshal. Macabre Price gives the guests loaded guns as party favors! It doesn't take long for the unusual occurrences and minor creeps to begin. Soon, the inhabitants are locked in and couldn't leave even if they wanted to! Long and Craig play Fred and Daphne as they try to unravel the goings-on. Cook drinks and gets more paranoid. Marshal tends to the wounded, getting more involved as the story progresses. Mitchum (Robert's sister!) is given little to do and doesn't appear to be a very significant actress. The film is hokey, campy and illogical...full of contrivances and inanities. Yet, it is undeniably entertaining. All of the hallmarks of an old-fashioned scary movie are in place....the eerie music, the undependable lights, swinging doors, secret passages and without question the most hilarious, terrifyingly ugly housekeeper ever put on film!

Price is right at home in these surroundings and does much to make the film palatable. There are a couple of fun plot twists to keep it from being too stale and the running time is a very comfortable hour and fifteen minutes. It's just a fun, entertaining way to waste an hour or so. Sadly, Craig (who had a real set of lungs on her...one of the greatest screamers ever!) was felled by a gunshot in real life about twelve years after this film was made at age 36. In fact, Marshal was dead within three years of heart ailments at 56 and Long died 16 years after from a heart attack at 47! And they say "Poltergeist" was cursed!