ALWAYS take your wedding vows seriously. That is the lesson that David (Arthur Roberts, "Revenge of the Ninja") needs to learn in this low budget combination of psychological and supernatural horror. David is set to marry Barbara (soap opera veteran Robin Strasser), daughter of a very rich man (John Beal, "Amityville 3-D"), but the guy has no shame. He fools around with a former girlfriend (Iva Jean Saraceni, "Creepshow") on his wedding day! Barbara promptly blows her top and drives off. The old man, despite his hatred of David, does warn him that his little girl (one of those spoiled princesses who tended to get everything she wanted) has a tendency to be vindictive and VIOLENT. Soon, David and the girlfriend are being terrorized repeatedly.
"The House That Cried Murder" (a.k.a. "The Bride" and "Last House on Massacre Street") is no lost gem begging for rediscovery, but it IS a pretty entertaining regional genre flick with the appropriate amount of surrealism. It also features a remarkable looking house, some okay atmosphere, a variable music score (sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't), and a fair amount of gore. Director Jean-Marie Pelissie (who wrote the script with producer John Grissmer) generates some scares and suspense along the way, leading to a solid finale with some surprises in store for David (and, hopefully, the viewer). As you can see, David is not exactly a sympathetic character, but the dilemma that faces him and the girlfriend IS compelling.
All in all, this minor but diverting feature is still worth seeking out for genre fans who always look for lesser-known entries like this.
Filmed in Connecticut.
Seven out of 10.
"The House That Cried Murder" (a.k.a. "The Bride" and "Last House on Massacre Street") is no lost gem begging for rediscovery, but it IS a pretty entertaining regional genre flick with the appropriate amount of surrealism. It also features a remarkable looking house, some okay atmosphere, a variable music score (sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't), and a fair amount of gore. Director Jean-Marie Pelissie (who wrote the script with producer John Grissmer) generates some scares and suspense along the way, leading to a solid finale with some surprises in store for David (and, hopefully, the viewer). As you can see, David is not exactly a sympathetic character, but the dilemma that faces him and the girlfriend IS compelling.
All in all, this minor but diverting feature is still worth seeking out for genre fans who always look for lesser-known entries like this.
Filmed in Connecticut.
Seven out of 10.