House on the Edge of the Park (1980)

Two low-life punks invite themselves to a party at a posh villa and after being taunted by their snobbish hosts, hold everyone hostage and subject them to various forms of torture and mayhem.

Director:

Ruggero Deodato

Writers:

Gianfranco Clerici, Vincenzo Mannino

Stars:

David Hess, Annie Belle, Christian Borromeo

Cast

Complete credited cast:
David Hess	...	Alex (as David A. Hess)
Annie Belle	...	Lisa
Christian Borromeo	...	Tom
Giovanni Lombardo Radice	...	Ricky
Marie Claude Joseph	...	Glenda
Gabriele Di Giulio	...	Howard
Brigitte Petronio	...	Cindy
Karoline Mardeck	...	Susan
Lorraine De Selle	...	Gloria

Storyline

Alex, a psychopathic mechanic, rapes a woman in the park. Later, a decadent couple pull into his shop needing car repair. They invite Alex and his mentally challenged buddy to join them at a decadent suburban party. Once there, Alex amuses himself by tormenting and raping the guests...

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Plot Keywords:

suntan pantyhose | serial murderer | serial killer | female stockinged legs | pantyhose | 

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Taglines:

David Hess ... star of "Last House on the Left" is loose again ... DON'T GO IN THE PARK!

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Genres:

Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian English

Release Date:

22 February 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

House on the Edge of the Park

Filming Locations:

Incir De Paolis Studios, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

F.D. Cinematografica

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min 79 min (heavily cut)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Giovanni Lombardo Radice's film debut.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Alex: Helooooo lady!

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Crazy Credits

The original US version of the film had Italian credits. Credits were translated for the UK and US DVD versions.

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Alternate Versions

The film was refused a UK cinema certificate by the BBFC in 1981 and later found itself listed as an official video nasty. It was finally passed for video release in 2002 after a staggering 11 minutes 43 secs of cuts which mostly removed the rape and assault scenes and heavily edited the razor-slashing of Cindy, the opening murder scene, and shots of Tony's head being slammed against a table.

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Connections

Referenced in The Big Box: Christmas Evil (2011)

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Soundtracks

Sweetly
Music and Lyrics by Benjamin and Riz Ortolani
Performed by Diana Corsini (uncredited)

User Reviews

"Be careful, Ricky...they're taking you for a ride."

And what a ride it is. "The House on the Edge of the Park" is yet another variation (I'll avoid the term 'rip-off') of "Last House on the Left," which succeeds because of David Hess's outstanding portrayal of a razor-wielding psycho. Unlike "Last House," which made generational conflict its primary theme, HotEotP is an unashamed exploitation picture that director Ruggero Deodato uses to embellish the excesses of the genre, and there's no better an actor than Hess to carry out such activities.

Hess plays Alex, a NY mechanic who, before the opening credits begin to roll, rapes and strangles an anonymous female (although it's not made clear whether the girl is actually dead). Cut to him and his friend Ricky (Giovanni Lombardo Radice), who have plans to go "boogie-ing" when they're accosted by a rich young couple with car trouble. Ricky fixes the problem (a torn alternator wire), and Alex persuades the couple to invite them to a little 'get-together' at an appropriately-secluded villa. Before long, Alex and Ricky are engaging in some rather heavy petting, and things turn violent.

That's the basic plot setup. At times, the movie moves from scene to scene as if being improvised on the spot, which either intesifies the action or slows it down. That the house (as a setting) is rather small limits the amount of action that can go on inside it. Yet Ruggero Deodato knows how to manipulate his audience--his use of violence and sex to advance the film along works in all the right ways, and keeps your attention. And the sex, violence, and depraved behavior here is pretty extreme, to say the least (the film boasts only one murder, but is far more vicious than LHotL, in my opinion).

Also elevating the film a few levels is a surprisingly name cast of genre actors, including Christian Borromeo ("Tenebrae"), Radice ("The Gates of Hell"), and Lorraine De Selle ("Cannibal Ferox"). These familiar actors add a unique gloss to the sleaziness of "House on the Edge of the Park."

7/10