While watching this kind of stylish jargon, you do keep forgetting this is part of the House franchise. The only other one I saw, that I really liked was of course the first. What we got here is some ghastly violence and some rather nasty unpleasantries. Child murder isn't something to take lightly on film, where I admit in my earlier years, the scene with the girl's flying head and decapitation disturbed me lightly. The versatile Brion James, plays one of the nastiest and vile killers, that makes the hitcher's John Ryder look tame. James is Max Jenke, a killer who is about to be fried, on the chair. Unfortunately all this high voltage that is 'spose to send this sick son of a bitch to hell, only makes him immortal, thus returning back into this cop's (Lance Henricksen's) life and taunting him, before slaughtering all his family. He is warned by a guy (Thom Bray) who deals with the phenomenon of serial killers who survive executions (in the real world, remember, there hasn't been any) but it's Jenke's avenging spirit, that's returned, playing havoc with Henricksen and his family. The daughter's hot too, and the son's a real character who loves heavy metal, Quick and Chilli, apparently in bulk. Of course, James steals the horror show, while Henricksen was very good, where I thought Thom Bray, as the weird warning nut, was good too. Matt Clark, an actor I like, ever since Tuff Turf, I was glad to see show up in this, while legend and reservoir dog, Lawrence Tierney, at the start ,as the warden speaking with very little words for Jenke, was another appreciative moment. But honestly House 3 is bad, though entertaining and stylish junk, with a nasty streak, where really understanding the whole business of the film had me at heavy qualm. Is Henricksen imagining it? Is it real? Which parts are? E.g. The daughter receiving the phonecall from Jenke. He would have to be alive. And the whole near slaughtered family coming back to life, after killing the spirit. Doesn't make sense, but too consider the first film, but that one made my sense, as from Roger Cobb's view. You didn't know what instance was real, or not, whatever. But this film is bad, mainly because of the nasty nature of it, with some gruesome occasional violence. A nice intimate scene I liked with daughter Pfeiffer, and the soon to be slaughtered stud, Vinnie.
Review of The Horror Show
