The Legend Of Hell House. Poster/Stills/Film Review. UK 1973.

The Legend of Hell House.

Starring: Roddy McDowall, Gayle Hunnicut, Pamela Franklin, Clive Revill, Roland Culver, Written: Richard Matherson, Directed; John Hough.

This was a slightly better of a horror-movie-trip down memory lane but only just. 

THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE, Roddy McDowall, Gayle Hunnicutt, Clive Revill, 1973. TM and Copyright © 20th Century Fox Film Corp. All rights reserved. Courtesy: Everett Collection.

The Legend of Hell House, "borrows" a lot, if that's the right term, it's story, concept and premise from the absolutely fantastic and original attempt at looking at The Haunted House idea/genre of director Robert Wise's, "The Haunting" from 1963.

Not actually a direct copy it has no connection other than it is a haunted house film, it is based on the novel "Hell House" by Richard Matherson, Matherson was also the "screenwriter" on the film. Richard Matherson, is the incredibly prolific, influential and talented science-fiction writer.

Matherson has been behind many of the greatest modern science-fiction stories that were ever turned into films such as, The Shrinking Man filmed as "The Incredible Shrinking Man", "I Am Legend" filmed as The Omega Man and he has also been behind many episodes of "The Twilight Zone" as the writer, including the unforgettable, "Nightmare At 20,000 Feet" that featured William Shatner as the air plane passenger tormented by a Gremlin attacking the plane's wing and looking through the window at him as it's flying along. 

That is possibly one of the thing's that should give you a reason for watching "The Legend Of Hell House". Personally I had not seen it until just recently, the version I watched was presented in an anamorphic wide screen version and in DVD format, which appeared to be uncut from Pathe UK and 20th Century Fox Films in a special triple feature presentation box set from 2002, along with Aussie Classic, "The Cars That Ate Paris" and Roger Corman's, "The Fall Of The House Of Usher".

The Legend of Hell House (1973)Directed by John HoughShown: Roddy McDowall (as Benjamin Franklin Fischer), Pamela Franklin (as Florence Tanner).

The second reason you should maybe check The Legend Of Hell House is if your into 1970's horror films is that it's directed by John Hough the British Film Director who brought us the totally amazing "Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry", one of the ultimate 1970's car chase "Road Movies" you will never forget once seen, that starred Peter Fonda and Goldie Hawn. John Hough had also earlier in 1971 directed "The Twins Of Evil" one of the more erotic vampire films of the 1970's.

So what's it like and is it any good?

Lionel Barrett, played by Clive Revill is a leading Physicist who seems determined to "de-bunk" any Paranormal Activity as simply an unknown form of "electrical magnetic energy", so he is contracted by Roland Culver who is Mr Deutsch, a cynical eccentric, who is also a millionaire (they were always millionaire's in 70's films *see my review for The Beast Must Die), to investigate The Belasco House, which was the scene of a bloody mass murder performed by a sadistic evil pervert millionaire (*see millionaire's again) Emeric Belasco some years previous. 

THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE, Pamela Franklin, 1973. TM and Copyright © 20th Century Fox Film Corp. All rights reserved. Courtesy: Everett Collection.

The Belasco House has a reputation amongst ghost hunters as being the most haunted in the country and had been investigated before with a tragic outcome that all but one of the Paranormal Investigators died. So similar to "The Haunting" a collection of two eminent and gifted "Psychic's" or "Mediums" are requested by Barrett to assist him in his investigations, one portrayed by Pamela Franklin (The Innocent's) as Florence Tanner a "mental medium" and spiritualist and the other, Roddy McDowall (Planet of the Apes) as a "physical medium" who was the only survivor from the previous investigation of The Belasco House. 

The Legend of Hell House (1973) Directed by John Hough Shown: Pamela Franklin (as Florence Tanner).

Pamela Franklin's performance is the best of the lot, saying that all the actors in their respective roles "ham-it-up" quite a bit, but her's is "stand out" as it is really quite a bit of naughty fun as she can channel the spirit of the evil sadist killer "Emeric Belasco's" son, "Daniel" and becomes "possessed" by him and frequently speaks in his voice "Exorcist Style" (which was released the same year) so she begins to swear a bit and here comes the naughty part becomes, while possessed, extremely voluptuous and sexualized as she intimidates the other members of the cast, ooh la la ! 

The Legend of Hell House (1973)Directed by John HoughShown: Roddy McDowall (as Benjamin Franklin Fischer)

Roddy McDowall is Ben Fischer, the so-called "physical medium" who is also psychically attacked by the spirits of the house and in one hilarious scene he has some sort of hugely over dramatic convulsive fit where he falls off to sleep then suddenly screams his head off, jumps up and around then writhes around on the floor in a ridiculously exaggerated muscle spasm, just hilarious. In fact nearly 40 years after it's release the whole film is pretty laugh out loud funny with it's contrived and cliched ideas of ghosts, spirits and all of it's mumbo jumbo, hocus pocus.

Barrett's wife, "Edith", the gorgeous Gayle Hunnicut from the brilliant film "Eye Of The Cat" 1969, also becomes an early victim to the spirits of the "Belasco's" auto-erotisism as they explore the extremely "un-quiet" haunted house and it's spirits. One night just after they arrive at the house she finds a book by "Emeric Belasco" after reading it and then later waking from a dream she leaves her husband asleep and goes downstairs and then takes off her negligee in front of McDowell offering herself to him, seductively. 

So all in all it's not actually very scary or horrific, there is the obligatory semi-rotten corpse hidden behind a wall, there is a tiny amount of gore but nothing special, no full on nudity, you kind of get to the edge but go no further, it's all bit a of tease really, it promises a lot but delivers hardly anything to write home about. Classic it maybe, landmark possibly, these days it is very tame. It all depends on what your watching it for really, if you've not seen it you should have, because of some of the reasons I've stated above and it will entertain you on a mildly horrific level for an hour and a half.

The cinematography is one of it's good points from Alan Hume, rich colours, nice strange angles and every scene is perfectly lit, which you would expect from the director of photography on nearly all the "Carry-On" Films, three of the James Bond Films, "Octopussy", "A View To A Kill", "For Your Eyes Only", other films Alan Hume worked on are "Dr Terror's House Of Horrors" 1965, "From Beyond The Grave" 1974, "Eve Of Destruction" 1991 and Tobe Hooper's "Life Force" 1985, "Star Wars: Return Of The Jedi" and many UK TV series's like "The Avengers" 1968 and "Tales From The Crypt" 1996.

Seek and enjoy !!!