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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

House of the Devil, The

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House of the Devil, The reviews
74
7.8 User Score:

Generally favorable reviews

Based on 16 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 8 votes
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Movie Info

Genre(s): Horror  |  Suspense/Thriller

Written by: Ti West

Directed by: Ti West

Release Date:
Theatrical: October 30, 2009

Running Time: 95 minutes, Color

Origin: USA

Summary

RATING: R for some bloody violence

Starring Jocelin Donahue, Greta Gerwig, Tom Noonan, Mary Woronov, AJ Bowen, and Dee Wallace

Sam is a pretty college sophomore, so desperate to earn some cash for a deposit on an apartment that she accepts a babysitting job even after she finds out there is no baby. Mr. and Mrs. Ulman are the older couple who lure Sam out to their creeky Victorian mansion deep in the woods, just in time for a total lunar eclipse. Megan is Sam’s best friend, who gives her a ride out to the house, and reluctantly leaves her there despite suspecting that something is amiss. Victor at first seems like just a creepy guy lurking around the house, but quickly makes it clear that Sam will end this night in a bloody fight for her life. (Magnolia Pictures)

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

88

Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips

It is a fine little old-school thriller.

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83

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

There's wit but never a wink in this smartly shot production, which pays homage to the 1980s without fetishizing the era.

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83

The Onion (A.V. Club) Noel Murray

If nothing else, Ti West’s retro “Satan rules!” thriller The House Of The Devil gets the look and tone of early-’80s horror schlock exactly right.

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80

Los Angeles Times Andy Klein

The buildup is undeniably effective; for most of the movie, it provides the same kind of thrills as "Paranormal Activity," if somewhat less brilliantly.

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80

Time Out New York Keith Uhlich

West is far more adept at and interested in sustaining an unrelentingly ominous mood than in executing the genre-required spook shocks.

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80

Salon.com Stephanie Zacharek

A clever picture, and something of a novelty -- it's not going to change the face or direction of horror filmmaking in any drastic way. But it's fun to watch something that's so obviously made with love.

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80

The New York Times Manohla Dargis

Mr. West shows a real gift for the genre, particularly in his ability to generate dread with pinpricks rather than bludgeoning shocks, something even veterans twice his age have difficulty achieving. After years of vivisectionist splatter, here is a horror movie with real shivers.

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75

San Francisco Chronicle Peter Hartlaub

This isn't just a good throwback satanic thriller - it looks as if it was made during the era of satanist paranoia.

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75

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

The film may provide an introduction for some audience members to the Hitchcockian definition of suspense: It's the anticipation, not the happening, that's the fun.

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70

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

In keeping with his models, West is concerned with not suspense exactly but the ritual withholding and ultimate lavishing of bloody chaos.

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70

Village Voice Nick Pinkerton

Pumping the audience with inhale-exhale zooms and out-of-the-way close-ups, director Ti West's ratcheting of suspense in this alone-in-an-empty-house tale is proficient, if not psychologically piercing, in the best "Let's Scare Jessica to Death" fashion.

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70

Variety Peter Debruge

Call it the best '80s babysitter-in-peril movie never made. The House of the Devil delivers about as much as one could reasonably hope from the not-quite-alone-in-the-house category, with the bonus of authentically re-creating the low-budget look and feel of that era's classic horror entries.

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67

Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov

By far the freakiest and most unnerving shocker in theatres this season.

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63

New York Post Kyle Smith

Although the payoff is creepy, it takes a little too long to arrive -- and when it does, it's about as worn-out as the movie's title.

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63

USA Today Claudia Puig

The result can be palpably unnerving.

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40

The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt

This is the perfect illustration of the banality of most scare movies.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this movie is 7.8 (out of 10) based on 8 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

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