Friday, March 19, 2010

The House of the Devil (2009)

This movie is kind of a weird situation.  It's a movie made in 2009, but as if it was an 80s horror movie.  It definitely had a serious When a Stranger Calls vibe...in fact it made me go put that movie on my queue because I haven't seen it in years.

College student Samantha is broke and living with a slutty roommate who often locks her out of the room.  Desperate for a place of her own, she finally finds a landlord (awesome cameo by Dee Wallace!) who will give her a good deal.  But she still needs a few extra bucks to make the first month's rent.

She sees an ad for a babysitter on her campus and decides this is the ticket to some cold hard cash.  She calls the number from a pay phone and gets a creepy guy who says he will meet her in front of one of the classroom buildings to discuss.  However, she hangs out for a couple hours and dude never shows, and she gives up on the job.

However, it looks like Samantha's luck hasn't run out yet.  She returns to her dorm to discover that the guy called back and said that the first babysitter didn't work out and he still needs one.  She agrees to go to the house, accompanied by a friend. 

Samantha and her friend drives way out to the boons to this big expensive house.  She finds out the job is going to be a cinch and pay a fortune, but her friend can't stay.  Still desperate for dinero, she agrees and stays.  And the babysitter-alone-in-the-creepy-house drama begins.  But it's definitely NOT what you would expect...

This movie was pretty awesome because it was all about the anticipation.  From the minute she calls the number on the babysitter ad, shit is creeeeeeppy.  Everything from the chilly fall surroundings to the man's voice on the phone, to her arrival at the house.  I found myself jumping at things that were not even scary.  Great buildup and cool ending.  Really short too, so it moves along at a quick clip.

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