The People Under the Stairs (1991)

Two adults and a juvenile break into a house occupied by a brother and sister and their stolen children. There, they must fight for their lives.

Director:

Wes Craven

Writer:

Wes Craven

Stars:

Brandon Quintin Adams, Everett McGill, Wendy Robie

2 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Brandon Quintin Adams	...	Fool (as Brandon Adams)
Everett McGill	...	Man
Wendy Robie	...	Woman
A.J. Langer	...	Alice
Ving Rhames	...	Leroy
Sean Whalen	...	Roach
Bill Cobbs	...	Grandpa Booker
Kelly Jo Minter	...	Ruby Williams
Jeremy Roberts	...	Spenser
Conni Marie Brazelton	...	Mary
Josh Coxx	...	Young Cop (as Joshua Cox)
John Hostetter	...	Veteran Cop
John Mahon	...	Police Sergeant
Teresa Velarde	...	Social Worker
George R. Parker	...	Attic Cop

Storyline

The People Under the Stairs is the story of a young boy (Fool) from the ghetto and takes place on his 13th birthday. In an attempted burglary (along with two others) of the home of his family's evil landlords, he becomes trapped inside their large suburban house and discovers the secret of the "children" that the insane brother and sister have been "rearing" under the stairs.

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Plot Keywords:

kidnapping | child abuse | house | cellar | incest | 

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Taglines:

In every neighborhood there is one house that adults whisper about and children cross the street to avoid.

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Genres:

Comedy | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for terror/violence

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 November 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Le sous-sol de la peur

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$6,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,522,250, 3 November 1991, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$24,204,154

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Alive Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min 99 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Wendy Robie (Woman) credits this movie as the most fun she's ever had on a film set and one of her favorite projects she's ever done.

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Goofs

When Alice is telling Fool about the boys downstairs in the bathroom, she begins to cry and tears stream down her face. In the next shot the tears are gone and it doesn't look like she was crying at all.

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Quotes

Fool: [after Roach rescues him from "Daddy"] Thanks.
Roach: [smiles and nods]
Fool: [to Alice] He doesn't talk much, does he?
Alice: His tongue's cut out.
Roach: [opens his mouth and shows a severed stump]
Alice: Mommy caught him trying to call for help one day, and Daddy had to teach him to...
Fool: Speak no evil, right?
Alice: [nods]
Fool: Your father's one sick mother, you know that? Actually, your mother's one sick mother, too!
Alice: Shhh! You're speaking evil! They'd kill you if they heard a word you just said.

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Connections

Referenced in Rewind This! (2013)

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Soundtracks

DO THE RIGHT THING
Written by David 'Redhead' Guppy & Markell Demont Riley (as Markell Riley)
Performed by Readhead Kingpin & The F.B.I.
Courtesy of Virgin Records, Ltd.

User Reviews

I liked it

Many people dislike this movie but it's good enough for watching, if maybe not several times then at least once. "Don't damage the face", says Mother and leaves Father to punish Alice for being a bad girl. That's it, I'm hooked to the screen. First time I saw this movie I missed the beginning but it works well without it. Actually you can skip the background story with the financial problems and society issues and stick to the horror - and it's comical side. I specially liked the kid called Roach, who had his tongue cut out for bad words. Alice was also great, a shy little girl that tries to be nice for Mommy and not soil her pretty dress, though she feeds the basement people and guides Fool around when the time comes. When you watch a doll being pulled away from you on a string, you must follow it... Find a candle in the darkness. You know you must get out but the door is locked. The only way out is upwards.

There is a lot of nice visual stuff like the old bathroom or running inside the walls and the light drifting in from bullet holes. Mother and Father live in a fantasy where children are supposed to be pretty and behave. Now a few decades ago that was reality, but they are pulling it over the edge by mutilating their children and locking them in the basement if they're naughty. I recall that the kids weren't really theirs but kidnapped from around the area. Many people writing down the plot have misunderstood it somehow. It is quite poor but in this case it's not supposed to be a main attraction. I bet the writer came up with the idea of a sick mother and burglary in order to get money for medical treatment only after inventing the main idea about the house and the brother and sister living together as a couple, herding a bunch of insane children. Well they must have some reason to get Fool into the house, so why not...