House (1985) - Cunningham's unremarkable horror-comedy franchise opens

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A ghoulish severed hand catches the eye on this promising poster for Steve Miner's House

 

A writer with problems moves into the house, where his aunt hung herself, and his son disappeared with the plan of writing his Vietnam novel. - But monsters keep disturbing his writing peace!

 

House is written by Ethan Wiley (Bear (2010)), with Fred Dekker (If Looks Could Kill (1991)) contributing story elements, and directed by Steve Miner (Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)).

It is a neither scary nor funny horror comedy, - in fact is is just unserious and silly. And then it lacks the really good special effects that might overcome some of these deficiencies. (Best looking FX-wise is a scene, in which the house stands on a precipice, and the writer hangs with one hand over it.)

George Wendt (Opposite Day (2009)) of Cheers (1982-93) fame has the role as the good-natured neighbor, and he does well in the part. But House is not at all a good film.

 

Related posts:

 

House franchise: The Horror Show/House III: The Horror Show (1989) - Lousy horror product

Steve Miner: Halloween H20/Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998) - Myers spreads fresh terror in Miner's fine sequel 

Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981) - Miner debuts with solid if formulaic first sequel

Watch a short TV trailer for the film here

Cost: 3 mil. $

Box office: 22.1 mil. $

= Huge hit (returned 7.36 times its cost)

[House premiered 21 October (MIFED Film Festival, Italy) and runs 93 minutes. Shooting took place from April 1985 - ? in California, including in Los Angeles. The film opened #2, behind fellow new release Pretty in Pink, to a 5.9 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it spent one more weekend in the top 5 (#2) and grossed 19.4 mil. $ (87.8 % of the total gross). The success inspired sequel House II: The Second Story (1987), with a new writer/director and cast. Miner returned with Soul Man (1986). William Katt (The Encore of Tony Duran (2011)) returned in 12 TV credits prior to his theatrical return in White Ghost (1988); Wendt in Gung Ho (1986). House is rotten at 57 % with a 5.10/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

 

What do you think of House?

Halloween H20/Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998) - Myers spreads fresh terror in Miner's fine sequel

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Returning star Jamie Lee Curtis and an assortment of the fresh young faces against the ghoulish face of killer Michael Myers adorn this poster for Steve Miner's Halloween H20

It has been 20 years since Michael Myers' escape from a mental hospital and subsequent murderous spree on the fateful Halloween night of 1978. Laurie, his sister, has faked her own death and now works as the leader of a private school in California, as Michael strikes again.

Halloween H20 is written by Robert Zappia (Thunder Alley (1994-95)) and Matt Greenberg (Grey Knight (1993)) and directed by Steve Miner (Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)). It is the 7th film in the Halloween franchise, although it retcons [effectively ignores] the plots of the preceding 3 films.

It has a nostalgic value to me due to the time it came out and the time that I first saw it, but it also simply just works, although its plot setup is extremely simple. - Yet that is the case with Halloween right from the first one by John Carpenter, - a boogieman out to slay you, - and the simplicity doesn't diminish its effect.

Jamie Lee Curtis (Queens Logic (1991)) makes all the difference, because it is so palpable that she wants to be this character and support this universe, and that that's why she's there. She also has a wonderful exterior scene here with her real-life mother Janet Leigh (Prince Valiant (1954)), which in a beautiful way brings these two biologically and generically related horror queens together in the same film, - and gives it an added quality in the process.

Halloween H20 is well-made, elementarily exciting and mostly tasteful in its effects, (SPOILER perhaps cute teen Josh Hartnett (O (20021)) with a hockey ice skate through his face is on the edge but besides that.) It is a terrific, compact screamer.

 

Related posts:

 

Halloween franchise: Halloween (2007) - Zombie's remake is a bloody stinker

Steve Miner: Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981) - Miner debuts with solid if formulaic first sequel

 

 

Watch a short TV trailer for the film here

 

Cost: 17 mil. $

Box office: 75 mil. $

= Big hit (returned 4.41 times its cost)

[Halloween H20 premiered 27 July (USA) and runs 86 minutes. Carpenter was in talks to direct but insisted on being paid 10 mil. $ and getting a 3-picture deal, which the Weinstein brothers of Dimension Films turned down. Shooting took place from February - April 1998 in Utah and California, including Los Angeles. The film opened #3, behind holdover hit Saving Private Ryan and fellow new release Snake Eyes, to a 16.1 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it left the top 5 in its 2nd weekend and grossed 55 mil. $ (73.3 % of the total gross). The 20 mil. $ international gross comes from a 1999 Variety article. Roger Ebert gave the film a 2/4 star review, translating to 2 notches under this one. Myers returned with Curtis in Halloween: Resurrection (2002) by Rick Rosenthal. Miner returned with Lake Placid (1999). Curtis first returned in Virus (1999). Halloween H20 is rotten at 52 % with a 5.60/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Halloween H20?

Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981) - Miner debuts with solid if formulaic first sequel

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More bodies dropping bloodily is the only thing promised on this simple, brand-pushing poster for Steve Miner's Friday the 13th Part 2

A group of summer camp teachers have an easy, swell time in a camp near Crystal Lake, where a series of murders took place five years ago, as the maniacal killer Jason Vorhees turns out to still be alive - and ready for murder!

Friday the 13th Part 2, the first sequel to the 1980 slasher classic original, is written by Ron Kurz (King Frat (1979)) and directed by debuting Steve Miner (Warlock (1989)). The franchise comprises 12 films at this point, as well as works in other media.
The film is very formulaic and filled with clichés, (a car that refuses to start and so on), and it is slow by today's horror standards. But for a horror fan it is still an acceptable followup, and the ending in Jason's mother-idolizing crypt is a highlight.

Related post:

Friday the 13th franchise: Friday the 13th (1980) - Cunningham scores with simple but effective teen killer recipe

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 1.25 mil. $
Box office: 21.7 mil. $ (North America only)
= Mega-hit (returned more than 17.26 times its cost)
[Friday the 13th Part 2 was released 1 May (USA) and runs 87 minutes. Shooting took place in Connecticut and Los Angeles, California in and around October 1980. Jason's stunt double Steve Dash (Mr. Hush (2010)) was cut in a finger by a machete during filming and got rug burns around an eye for another scene. The icepick prop malfunctioned and injured an actress' head. 48 seconds had to be cut from the film for it to avoid an X rating by the MPAA. The film opened #1 to a 6.4 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it grossed 21.7 mil. $,  considerably under the first film's domestic total of 39.7 mil. $ but still highly profitable. The global final gross is not publicly known, but it is likely above 35 mil. $. Roger Ebert gave the film a 0.5/4 star review, translating to two notches harder than this one. Miner returned with the franchise's next entry, Friday the 13th Part III (1982). Amy Steel (Home Improvement (1994, TV-series)) returned in 5 TV-series before she came back to theaters in a bit part in Exposed (1983). Friday the 13th Part 2 is rotten at 34 % with a 4.5/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Friday the 13th Part 2?