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The Funhouse (1981)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writer:
Lawrence Block (writer)
Release Date:
13 March 1981 (USA)
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Tagline:
Something is alive in the funhouse...something that, tonight, will turn the funhouse into a carnival of terror! more
Plot:
Four teenage friends spent the night in a carnival funhouse and are stalked by a deformed man in a frankenstein mask. full summary | full synopsis
NewsDesk:
(16 articles)
Staunton Hill Coming to DVD
(From Dread Central. 11 September 2009, 5:24 PM, PDT)
G. Cameron Romero’s Staunton Hill coming to DVD
(From Fangoria. 10 September 2009, 12:57 PM, PDT)
(From Dread Central. 11 September 2009, 5:24 PM, PDT)
G. Cameron Romero’s Staunton Hill coming to DVD
(From Fangoria. 10 September 2009, 12:57 PM, PDT)
User Comments:
Blame it on the locals, yeah, that's a good idea...
more (109 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Elizabeth Berridge | ... | Amy Harper | |
| Shawn Carson | ... | Joey Harper | |
| Jeanne Austin | ... | Mrs. Harper | |
| Jack McDermott | ... | Mr. Harper | |
| Cooper Huckabee | ... | Buzz Dawson | |
| Largo Woodruff | ... | Liz | |
| Miles Chapin | ... | Richie | |
| David Carson | ... | Geek (as D. Lee Carson) | |
| Sonia Zomina | ... | Bag Lady | |
| Ralph Morino | ... | Truck Driver | |
| Kevin Conway | ... | Funhouse / Freakshow / Stripshow Barkers | |
| Herb Robins | ... | Carnival Manager | |
| Mona Agar | ... | Mona - a strip show dancer | |
| Wayne Doba | ... | The Monster | |
| William Finley | ... | Marco the Magnificent |
Additional Details
Also Known As:
Carnival of Terror
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Parents Guide:
Runtime:
96 min | Sweden:90 min (cut) | Belgium:80 min (video version)
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
West Germany:18 (cut) |
UK:15 (re-rating) |
Norway:15 (2009) (uncut) |
New Zealand:R16 |
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:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Quotes:
Funhouse:
...I've been expecting you.
Amy Harper: Why are you doing this?
Funhouse: I'm just protecting my family.
Amy Harper: Your family? It's not even human.
Funhouse: The Lord works in mysterious ways, little lady... He ain't such a bad fella; he does get himself in all sorts of trouble, though, don't he? Anyway, blood is thicker than water; I'm sure he's gonna be a real comfort to me in my old age. Now, how many people know you're here?
Amy Harper: Lots. They all know.
Funhouse: Well, no matter. We'll be pullin' outta here tomorrow mornin'. There's plenty other carnivals.
Buzz Klemmet: What'd you do with Liz?
Funhouse: Oh, I expect by now he's just finishin' up with her. We'll just wait here till he gets back.
[Richie's corpse appears]
[...]
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Amy Harper: Why are you doing this?
Funhouse: I'm just protecting my family.
Amy Harper: Your family? It's not even human.
Funhouse: The Lord works in mysterious ways, little lady... He ain't such a bad fella; he does get himself in all sorts of trouble, though, don't he? Anyway, blood is thicker than water; I'm sure he's gonna be a real comfort to me in my old age. Now, how many people know you're here?
Amy Harper: Lots. They all know.
Funhouse: Well, no matter. We'll be pullin' outta here tomorrow mornin'. There's plenty other carnivals.
Buzz Klemmet: What'd you do with Liz?
Funhouse: Oh, I expect by now he's just finishin' up with her. We'll just wait here till he gets back.
[Richie's corpse appears]
[...]
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Movie Connections:
References The Jazz Singer (1927)
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Four kids go to a sleazy traveling carnival one night and one of them comes up with the bright idea to spend the night inside the fun-house. While there, they witness a murder and are then pursued by the killer, a deformed monster.
One of Tobe Hooper's better post-"Texas Chain Saw Massacre" efforts works mainly because of authenticity (the film-makers located an actual working carnival with 1940's and 1950's era rides and set it up in North Miami) and atmosphere. I don't usually enjoy agreeing with critics, but Maltin is right: it's the impressive visuals that help to sell this movie. It's a little more than just your standard slasher film, because it actually does a good job of trying to be scary. The acting is above average (Elizabeth Berridge is a heck of a good screamer, and if she had been so inclined back in the early 1980's, she might have been able to give Jamie Lee a run for her money. Veteran character actor Kevin Conway in particular stands out, playing three different carnival barkers, chief among them the fun-house barker who happens to be the father of the killer. I actually believed him in scenes where he alternately views his mutant son with utter contempt and then love & sympathy. Street mime Wayne Doba also manages to generate some sympathy for the monster, making him more than just one-dimensional. (The makeup, by the way, was by ace veteran Rick Baker.) Good music, too.
The film begins with something I suppose the film-makers feel was "clever": a scene that mimics two infamous movie sequences: "Halloween"'s opening scene and "Psycho"'s shower scene. Is this an homage or a ripoff? You be the judge.
Hooper's next film was the very mainstream "Poltergeist" and from what I hear his career became very hit-and-miss from then on (I haven't seen most of his later films but they haven't generated good word-of-mouth).
7/10