The Funhouse (1981)

Calificación de los usuarios:

5.6/10   

Director:

Tobe Hooper

Guionista:

Lawrence Block (writer)

Release Date:

13 marzo 1981 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Frase comercial:

Something is alive in the funhouse...something that has the form of a human, but not the face...something that feeds off the flesh and blood of young innocents...

Plot:

Four teenage friends spent the night in a carnival funhouse and are stalked by a deformed man in a frankenstein mask.

Plot Keywords:

Female Nudity | Crystal Ball | Machinery | Video Nasty | Disfigured

Comentarios de los usuarios:

Could be Tobe Hooper's Crowning Achievement

US TV Schedule:

Sat. Oct. 11

1:00 AM

MAX

Cast

Elizabeth Berridge	...	Amy Harper
Shawn Carson	...	Joey Harper
Jeanne Austin	...	Mrs. Harper
Jack McDermott	...	Mr. Harper
Cooper Huckabee	...	Buzz Klemmet
Largo Woodruff	...	Liz Duncan
Miles Chapin	...	Richie Atterbury
David Carson	...	Geek (as D. Lee Carson)
Sonia Zomina	...	Bag Lady
Ralph Morino	...	Truck Driver
Kevin Conway	...	Funhouse - Conrad Straker / Freakshow / Stripshow Barkers
Herb Robins	...	Carnival Manager
Mona Agar	...	Strip Show Dancer
Wayne Doba	...	The Monster - Gunther Straker
William Finley	...	Marco the Magnificent

También conocida como:

Carnival of Terror
Carnaval del terror (Argentina) [es]
Casa de los horrores, La (Spain) [es]

Duración:

96 min | Belgium:80 min (video version) | Sweden:90 min (cut)

País:

USA

Idioma:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sonido:

Dolby

Clasificación:

West Germany:18 (cut) | Argentina:18 | Australia:R | Finland:(Banned) | France:-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:X (original rating) | USA:R | UK:18 (video rating) (1987) | Norway:(Banned) (1981-2003) (cinema release) | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

North Miami, Florida, USA

Company:

Mace Neufeld Productions

Trivialidades:

The opening sequence is an homage to both Psycho (1960) and Halloween (1978).

Quotes:

Funhouse: [discovers that the Monster - who also turns out to be his son - has killed Madame Zena after paying her for sex... because she wouldn't give him a refund] You paid Madame Zena a hundred dollars for this? You crazy fool, I could have gotten you one of them tent-girls for fifteen! Well, you never were much for knowing the value of cash, were you?

Movie Connections:

References The Wolf Man (1941)

Could be Tobe Hooper's Crowning Achievement

Two couples on a double date spend their evening at the local carnival, against the main character's father's wishes. Rumor was circulating that kids in another county were killed at that carnival in the past. But they ignore the father, craft a really thin lie (the old "sleeping at a friend's house" routine), and go anyway. And then comes the big idea: stay overnight in the funhouse. This plan goes fine until the kids witness a fortune teller slash prostitute get murdered by the man in the Pat Sajak mask.

Tobe Hooper, the director, is a big name in horror. "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and "Poltergeist" are modern classics. I don't claim to be an expert on Hooper -- I've seen only a handful of his work -- but I would rank this near the top of the list. I have read other reviews calling this film, without hesitation, Hooper's best work, and I think they make a strong case. While the least known of the big three Hooper films, it has a timelessness to it that will strike terror in people's hearts forever.

Carnivals are scary. From "Carnival of Souls" to the more recent "Dark Ride", the background of a circus can be chilling. Throw in some clowns, carnival barkers and automated robots (dolls that move) and you have the perfect set-up. You don't really need a masked killer to heighten the fear, but Hooper throws one in anyway. If nothing else can be said about this movie, you can say the perfect atmosphere was created for winning film.

Beyond that, we have the same old horror standards. Teenagers making out, smoking pot and being stupid. We have a main character -- Amy Harper (Elizabeth Berridge) -- who is quite sexy, although her taste in men needs some adjustment (I'm sorry, but I thought Buzz Klemmet (Cooper Huckabee) was a jerk). And getting busy on the first date after not hitting it off well? Believable for some reason. Unlike her female co-star (Largo Woodruff), they find ways to get her topless multiple times in the film. I'm not complaining, but the real mystery is this: why didn't we see her in more 1980s films? I think the defining moment for this movie is when the mask is removed from the killer. I won't reveal anything that will spoil it, but I have to say that the man under the mask was quite the shocker for this first-time viewer. You think you know, but you have no idea.

Absolutely see "The Funhouse". 1970s and 1980s horror is a defining era for the genre, and this film sits right near the top of some of the best works. Possibly eclipsing "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and comfortably resting with "Halloween" (a film this one pays homage to in the opening scene), Hooper has made a name for himself. More recent contributions -- such as "The Damned Thing" -- are lacking, but classics like "The Funhouse" will guarantee him a slot in the Horror Movie Hall of Fame, if such a thing existed.