In preperation for the highly anticipated and much hyped release of the remake this week, I went back and checked out the original for the first time in at least 15 years. I had remembered the film to be quite freaky when I was a kid, and after 25 years it is still a good film.
James Brolin and the wonderful Margot Kidder play George and Kathy Lutz in this film adaptation of the popular book which was based on true events.
The premise is obviously one which captured the world’s attention, and genuine intrigue led to the success of the film. Whilst the film is a good watch, with good performances from Brolin and Kidder, I felt that it jumped around too much to be fully effective, making it essentially sequence after sequence of creepy goings on.
The film does drag a little and the anticlimatic ending is truly laughable as Brolin runs back into the house to save his dog!! And people think females do dumb things in horror movies!!
The majority of the effects were well handled and the house did indeed give off a creepy vibe, but today’s audiences may find it dull and even laughable as they have been brought up on a diet of MTV and reality TV.
Lalo Schifrin’s iconic theme tune adds a great deal to the production, as does Rod Steiger’s turn as Father Delaney, as you can tell that he genuinely believed in the material and gave it his all.
OVERALL SUMMARY
After 25 years, this is still a good film but I think that the basis for the story is what gives this film it’s staying power more than anything else.
