Like most people, I don’t read enough books. Unfortunately, compared to other activities like watching movies or listening to music, reading requires a real time investment. Everything else in your life takes a momentary backseat while you process what you’re reading. And generally on the rare occasion that we get a moment to ourselves, even something as simple as picking up a book seems like an ordeal. But we all need this time, and I’m trying to better integrate it into my life, especially now that I’m working again.
The most recent horror book I read was 1971’s Hell House, written by Richard Matheson, who also penned I Am Legend, and a wealth of other stories and screenplays. It was a very cinematic read, and its adaptation into a movie seemed inevitable. Two years later, Matheson wrote the screenplay for The Legend of Hell House, starring Pamela Franklin and Roddy McDowell, and I recently shelled out the $3.99 to watch it on Youtube. This review will be a little different than others, because I will be comparing it to the book, which is more than fair, considering they both have the same writer.
I know less about the director John Hough, whose only other film I’ve seen is 1980’s The Watcher in the Woods, a Disney release from that short period of time when Disney was experimenting with darker material. I didn’t review it because the film was fairly unmemorable, even with a small performance by screen legend Bette Davis. Still, its problems were more due to the script and the casting rather than the directing, so there was no particular reason to doubt his skill on the earlier film.
Hell House (as I will now refer to the movie) is, as one might expect, a story of a haunted house. It’s very much in the vein of The House on Haunted Hill and The Haunting, with a small cast of characters spending a week at the Belasco House on the whims of an eccentric millionaire. It even has a character much like Elisha Cook’s Watson Pritchard, a neurotic who knows the true power of the house. But in Hell House, Benjamin Fischer (McDowell) is a once-great psychic, who was the only survivor of an earlier expedition. He has an ally in younger medium Florence Tanner (Franklin), who is more naive and thus less guarded against the house’s evil power. Science is represented by physicist Dr. Lionel Barrett and his younger wife Ann (named Edith in the book).
As you might guess, the house pretty quickly starts affecting Florence, and her experiences immediately put her at odds with Dr. Barrett. Barrett doesn’t believe in spirits, but has his own theories about hauntings, and has developed a scientific machine which he believes will dissipate its evil energy. However, his skepticism is tested as Florence manifests psychic evidence of the paranormal. The more Barrett pushes her, the more she puts herself at risk against Fischer’s advice, and eventually she makes contact with what she believes to be the house’s tortured spirit.
One of the most interesting aspects of Hell House is how the house affects Ann. Though it is more effectively communicated in the book, the Barretts’ physical relationship is a cool one, and the house works on Ann’s frustrations. In both mediums, Ann is compelled towards the younger Benjamin (who being played by Roddy McDowell, would be an excellent choice for a one night stand). Unsurprisingly removed from the film version are the implications that Ann/Edith is bisexual, and is also attracted to Florence.
Who could blame you, really?
As such, Legend of Hell House actually feels a bit neutered, which is a weird thing to say about a movie where the former owner was basically the Marquis de Sade. “Drug addiction, alcoholism, sadism, bestiality, mutilation, murder, vampirism, necrophilia, cannibalism, not to mention a gamut of sexual goodies” are referenced in the very beginning of the movie, but we see little to no evidence of this depravity. The movie also uses the book’s timestamp feature, which seems excessive for a 90 minute movie, especially when each one is accompanied by the exact same musical cue. In fact, the music is probably one of the movie’s greatest failures, as they seem to have only a handful of spooky tunes to use ad infinitum.
I love a good haunted house story, and Roddy McDowell is one of my personal favorite actors, but the film does very little to make itself stand out.
For my recommendations, I would recommend the book over the movie. Like much of Matheson’s material, it’s a quick read. I would also recommend the Netflix series The Haunting of Hill House, which aside from being a great series, also features a psychic, whose homosexuality is explicitly acknowledged. Thank goodness for the 21st century.
Pandemonium of Absence 