by: Anghus Houvouras

HOUSE OF THE DEVIL
Length: 93 minutes
Director: Ti West
Friday, November 13, 10:45pm-11:59pm
Lumina Theater

It was over two years ago when I first met Ti West, director of House of the Devil, a new film making it’s local premiere at Cucalorus. I was on set of the locally filmed Cabin Fever 2, doing some interviews for the horror Web site Bloody Disgusting. Within the first five minutes of meeting West, it was easy to see how he ended up directing horror films. There is a sense of eerie, childlike glee underneath his deadpan demeanor. His affection for the genre and his obsessive devotion to the craft makes him someone worth watching.

I’m not sure what happened to Cabin Fever 2. After filing my stories the whole thing kind of vanished into the ether. I was delighted when I picked up the screener for House of the Devil and saw “Ti West’s” name in the credits. The movie’s an interesting little larf—a pungent, occasionally wayward, scary movie that seems derived from the kind of satanic cult mayhem that inspired such anarchy as Manos: The Hands of Fate. Truth be told, House of the Devil plays like an episode of Tales from Darkside, a 1980’s horror anthology series in the vein of Twilight Zone. The episodes were always creepy, a little disturbing, and had some truly frightening moments that inspired many sleepless nights.

House of the Devil turns it up a notch wherein everything about it feels conveniently situational. A cute young college student signs up for a job babysitting. Everything goes to hell. Between points “A” and “Z,” there are a whole lot of scares, leading to a wonderfully creepy conclusion. High art, it’s not—but it’s wonderfully executed and lovingly crafted.

West has zeal in his work, featuring tiny little moments that make the movie amount to more than the sum of its thinly cobbled narrative. If the film has a flaw, it is the maddening sense of inevitability that permeates through every reel. The road map for this film is so woefully laid out. The only hope lies in the slowly-rising tension that eventually leads to a more exciting final act.

As I watched House of the Devil, a number of classic spooky films came to mind. I wondered if West was doing some kind of subtle satire of the genre. It’s difficult to interpret a film like this. Taken as a scary little satanic cult film, it’s perfectly serviceable. I was never quite sure if some of the cheesier elements were intended or just a by-product of this kind of movie. I enjoyed myself on one level, but spent a lot of wasted hours considering if there were other levels. That’s the trouble with kitsch: When spread thick, it becomes quickly apparent. When spread thin over a broad canvas, it’s more difficult to differentiate.

Maybe because House of the Devil is part of Cucalorus’ lineup did I feel the need to over-critique. (It wouldn’t be the first time my brain got me into trouble.) What I wrestled with was the eternal question: form or function? The form is wonderful, but is there any purpose to the function? Was West striving to bring something new to the genre? Or was he giving his best interpretation of films that influenced his particular brand of whimsy?

House of the Devil almost feels like a cinematic ellipses. Eventually, we’ll see another film from Ti West. Maybe then we’ll have the answer. Hopefully, he’ll go the way of Peter Jackson, whose early films helped him transition into a quality director, as opposed to Eli Roth who made a ridiculous horror film before transitioning into crap, as evidenced by the Hostel films. I would recommend House of the Devil, but I also want to see West’s more innovative contributions in the future.