House on Haunted Hill (1999)

Plot Synopsis:

A group of strangers are brought to an abandoned asylum by a roller coaster tycoon. They each get a million dollars if they stay the night. Before long, they all realize there’s more to the house than they had initially anticipated.

Positives:

The first thing I want to highlight is the movie’s tone. This is a movie that operates as a roller coaster ride. As a result, it doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s just trying to be a fun time. For me, this really works. Jumping off from that, I really like the cast. The standouts have to be Famke Janssen and Geoffrey Rush. These are two people who are just awful people who have no love left for each other in their marriage. To clarify, yes, I am talking about the characters and not the actors. I also love the look of the house. They do a good job making the house feel like a character in and of itself.

Mixed Aspects:

As much as I like the cast performances, the characters themselves are fine. The relationship between the characters played Janssen and Rush are the most fleshed out to me. I also feel like there’s a little bit to the characters played by Ali Larter and Taye Diggs. Granted, it’s not much development. The character played by Peter Gallagher is kind of just a question mark. So, a plot point with the movie is Famke Janssen decides she wants a birthday party a the titular house on haunted hill, and sends Geoffrey Rush the list of guests she wants. Geoffrey Rush shreds her guest list and makes up his own. But, some force related to the house erases his guests and makes up a guest list of its own (the descendants of the people who had survived the fire that shut the asylum down in the first place). There’s a twist later on where his character is revealed to be there because he’s Janssen’s lover, and has nothing to do with the house at all. The final thing I have mixed feelings toward is the very end. On one hand, I can appreciate the idea that it doesn’t overstay its welcome. On the other hand, it does feel a little abrupt. 

Negatives:

So, this is a tricky one. I saw this movie for the first time when I was in middle school. I bring this up because I have always found the CGI smoke monster near the end of the movie to be a step too far into being goofy. I can’t tell if this is a case where it looked good in 1999, and just didn’t stand the test of time, or if it never looked good at all. 

Final Thoughts:

To me, this is just a genuinely fun horror movie. It’s a solid cast having a good time. Some of the CGI looks a little wonky, and there’s not a ton of development to the characters. But, that doesn’t take away from my enjoyment of this movie.

My Rating:

🩸🩸🩸🩸

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