THE
HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY (1981)
Starring
Catriona MacColl, Paolo Malco, Ania Pieroni, Giovanni Prezza, Silvia
Collatina, Dagmar Lassander. Directed by Lucio Fulci. (86 min)
ON
BLU-RAY FROM BLUE UNDERGROUND
Review
by Josey, the Sudden Cat😾
Some
films are deserving of reassessment. I once wrote a pretty scathing
review of The House By the Cemetery for another website,
mostly attacking Lucio Fulci himself over his penchant for using
audacity and gore to mask a perceived lack of directorial skill. I
still think he’s overpraised in horror circles and doesn’t
deserved to be mentioned alongside such Italian masters as Bava and
Argento, but have to admit I kind-of enjoyed it this time around, for reasons
other than the violence that endeared him to gorehounds.
The
third and final chapter in Fulci’s tenuously-linked “Gates
of Hell” trilogy, The House By the Cemetery is
less ambiguous than The Beyond, not as over-the-top as City
of the Living Dead, but arguably better-crafted than both.
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| Why I don't go to Supercuts. |
The
film still has some of the usual issues typical of Fulci...lapses in
logic, questionable performances, some atrocious dubbing and shallow
characters. From a story standpoint, however, this is also his most
accomplished effort since Zombie, a
Lovecraftian tale trimmed of the isolated
set-pieces created to amp-up the gore but don’t really advance
the narrative.
Not
that The House By the Cemetery
isn’t violent. There’s still plenty of brutal bloodletting –
most of it pretty well done – but relatively restrained by
Fulci’s sickly
standards. Especially
memorable is the murder which opens the film, where a young woman is
knifed through the back of the head, ending with the tip of the blade
protruding from her mouth. While
still gleefully gratuitous, these
scenes actually serve the
narrative,
not vise-versa. Even
if you took Fulci’s bag o’ tricks away from him, there’s still
a fairly engaging story here. At the very least, there’s enough
substance between the gore scenes to maintain interest.
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| The Adventures of Snotman. |
The
emphasis on atmosphere helps immensely. For
the most part, the film
features impressive
cinematography and haunting
imagery, both of which are enhanced by a moody score from Walter
Rizzati, whose sonic palate
is more varied than Fulci’s usual collaborator, Fabio Frizzi.
Speaking
of
which, that score is one of many bonus features included in this
beautifully-packaged 3-disc
set. Like recent similar 4K
restorations from Blue Underground, The
House By the Cemetery is
accompanied by extensive supplemental material, both new and
carried-over from previous releases (outlined below). From
a technical standpoint, the movie has never looked or sounded better.
As the third Fulci film to
get such royal treatment in
less than two years, it’s a
must-own for his fans.
While
I wouldn’t go as far as to
say The House By the Cemetery
is a great film, it
approaches good more
often than my original review suggested.
It still suffers
from some of the trappings
that have torpedoed most Lucio Fulci films, but a decent story and
suitably moody tone go a long way in glossing over the rough spots,
including child character Bob’s daffy dubbing
(which I’m
glad they retained, because it’s hilarious).
EXTRA
KIBBLES
NEW:
“HOUSE QUAKE” - An amusing, if somewhat rambling, interview
with co-writer Giogio Mariuzzo.
NEW:
CATRIONA MACCOLL Q&A – Filmed in 2014, this is an
entertaining interview with the film’s star before a live audience.
She has quite a few amusing anecdotes about her work in Fulci’s
films.
NEW:
“CALLING DR. FREUDSTEIN” - As with Blue Underground’s
recent Zombie re-issue, Fulci biographer Stephen Thrower discusses
the director and the film’s history.
NEW:
AUDIO COMMENTARY – By author Troy Howarth.
NEW:
LENTICULAR SLIPCASE & REVERSIBLE COVER ART
NEW:
SUPPLEMENTARY BOOKLET – Includes photos,
promotional art, cart, crew & CD credits and a lengthy essay by
Michael Gingold.
NEW:
CD SOUNDTRACK – Walter Rizzati’s atmospheric score (31
tracks).
"MEET
THE BOYLES” - Interviews with actors Catriona MacColl &
Paolo Malco.
"CHILDREN
OF THE NIGHT” - Interviews with actors Giovanni Frezza &
Silvia Collatina. Amusingly, Frezza begins by apologizing for the
famously shitty dub of his voice in the film.
"TALES
OF LAURA GITTLESON” - Interview with actor Dagmar Lassander.
"MY
TIME WITH TERROR” - Interview with actor Carlo De Mejo.
"A
HAUNTED HOUSE STORY” - Interviews with co-writers Dardano
Sacchetti & Elisa Briganti.
"TO
BUILD A BETTER DEATH TRAP” - Interviews with cinematographer
Sergio Salavati, make-up effects artist Marizio Trani, effects artist
Gino De Rossi and actor Giovanni De Nava (you know...Snotman).
DELETED
SCENE
2
TRAILERS & A TV SPOT
IMAGE
GALLERIES – Chock full of international promo materials
KITTY CONSENSUS:
PURR-R-R...LIKE A GOOD SCRATCH BEHIND THE EARS.
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