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55%
Overall Rating
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Ranked #3,670
...out of 13,123 movies
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Young urban professionals Jesse and his girlfriend Kate move into an old mansion that has been in Jesse's family for generations. They are soon joined by Jesse's goofy friend Charlie, who brought along his diva girlfriend Lana, in the hopes of being discovered by Kate, who works for a record company. Jesse has returned to this old family mansion after his parents were murdered when he was a baby. While going through old things in the basement, Jesse finds a picture of his great-great grandfather (and namesake) in front of a Mayan temple holding a crystal skull with jewels in the eyes. In the background is a man Jesse learns is Slim Razor, a former partner of his great-great grandfather turned bitter enemy after a disagreement over who would get to keep the skull.
--TMDb
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There is not much to say about "House 2" except -- WTF? -- and I don't necessarily mean that in a bad way. In fact, I am quite sure that I mean that in a good way. "House 2" is about as much of a sequel to the original film as "Halloween III" is to the original in that franchise. Ethan Wiley wrote and directed this sequel, but he completely changed the tone, mood and direction of this film, as compared to the original. And, surprisingly, it works. What we've got here is a sequel that is just as good as the original, and totally different. It's a unique horror experience that blends element of science fiction, horror, fantasy and the good old fashioned Western. It's a kaleidoscope of genres, all blending together and forming a rather entertaining calliope of cinema.
How to describe the plot of "House 2"? It has demons, reanimated corpses, things flying around the room, and Bill Maher -- is that enough? Arye Gross stars as Jesse, who moves into a cursed old house and then finds that his grandfather - hitherto known as Gramps -- is now a walking corpse. Most of the action revolves around an ancient Aztec skulls which has immense power and is used in rituals. The story is so colorful and so comical that we eventually forget we're supposed to be watching a sequel to "House". In fact, the only thing this film has in common with the original is that is features a "Cheers" cast member -- this time, John Ratzenberger.
This film also features a beautifully assembled cast of character actors and comedians. Arye Gross, one of the standout stars of the 1980's, takes on the leading role, and Royal Dano, always a delight on screen, serves up one of his most memorable performances as Gramps. Amy Yasbeck pops up, as does Bill Maher in a rather funny supporting role. It's nice to see a horror/comedy like this paid such attention when it comes to correct casting. Normally, they would just shove any old person into the roles -- and back when this film was released, these might have been just 'any old persons'. "House 2" benefits from a cast that knows what they're doing.
One of the classic examples of 1980's horror, "House 2" is a ball of fun that doesn't end. It ridiculous, over the top and totally campy -- but it's a hoot and a holler and one of the films I remember most from that time period. It's not the first film, and is intentionally meant to be nothing like it -- it's a different take on a different story, and it pays off in a big way. No one can watch this film and not be totally charmed by Royal Dano as Gramps. No one can watch this film and not shake their head at some of the absurdity of the situations. No one can watch this film and tell me that Hollywood puts out anything close to this creative anymore. 8/10.
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#1:
Ginose
- added 08/19/2008, 02:23 AM
Finally watched it again, didn't like it as much
as I did the first time. Really, it didn't feel
anything like the original... quite a
disappointment...
4/10 for the
re-newed story, for certain.
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#2:
MrMurder
- added 06/13/2011, 11:12 PM
How can you dislike this movie? Excellent review.
Far better than the first in my opinion.
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