Reviews from the Vault: The House of the Devil (2009)

Ti West's The House of the Devil is based on true events that take place in the 1980's. The film follows Samantha Hughes (Jocelin Donahue), a sophomore in college in need of extra income to support her near future move to a new house. To raise a bit of money, Samantha agrees to a night of baby-sitting that turns into something she couldn't have imagined. Upon arrival and on the night of the lunar eclipse, things rapidly become eery when she begins to discover that the people dwelling in the house are sadistic cultists. The House of the Devil succeeds where recent horror movies fail in the sense that its not fueled by gore, but by tension. From the first confrontation with Mr. Ulman (Tom Noonan of Manhunter), it is very clear to the viewer that he and his family are nothing less than sadistically wicked. The relief in this is that the film is not driven by the mystery of who's good and who's bad, but by truly authentic tension. Much like firmly gripping horror films of the 1980's, Devil contains a slow build to a deeply chilling finale. It is not necessarily the ending that will haunt your dreams, but everything leading up to the ending. As the viewer watches Samantha go about her night, they can hardly stay in their seats knowing that evil lurkes and not knowing when it will strike. Much like Jaws not showing the beast for the majority of the film, The House of the Devil leaves you almost impatiently awaiting the beast; only this time the beast comes in human form. Donahue and Noonan's top-notch acting along with Ti West's best direction of his young career make this gut-wrenching horror flick worth the watch. I am forced to score The House of the Devil 4 stars due to its pleasingly horrific essence.