House (1986)/Brief

 

For a few years my daughter loved to watch this with me, but I believe last year was our first time not doing so. I had planned to watch it in 2020; I could use all the laughs I could get after that fucking bad year. I tried to watch it on Tubi but eventually I pulled out the DVD. The trauma of Vietnam and losing his son, a marriage that collapsed and a writing career seemingly on the decline; I think the film really has a lot to say about the character of William Katt. I get that he's notable for "The Greatest American Hero", but for many like me really know him for House. I need to revisit the fourth film for the blog. Roger Cobb will always be a memorable character to me in all of horror. I continue to write about the films I love year after year. House is just one of many horror films all throughout the decade that had these ugly monsters that could easily fit in the Evil Dead, Night of the Demons or any other assortment of 80s horrors. I was bummed when House didn't get a segment in In Search of Darkness. I hope it does in the sequel to In Search of Darkness. Still Roger Cobb "defeating" the house that seems to unleash his fears on him, rescuing his son, and feeling as if he conquered a particular demon with the loss of Moll's Big Ben. And he chops up monsters, flushes a chopped off monster hand down the toilet, keeps a little boy from being pulled by two miniature uglies up a chimney, fends off cops called by his neighbor (George Wendt) by protecting his secret (a hidden monster shot by a shotgun in a room of the house), and blows up the rotted (and gargantuan) corpse of Big Ben with a grenade. One of the remaining and lasting successes to the film, for me, is the casting of Wendt in the supporting role--Kay Lenz isn't as significant a presence, but her role is still not a total waste--and he plays off Katt so well. Any time Wendt is on screen I can't help but smile. This was right in the midst of a television high for both Wendt and Moll, and their casting in House just made the whole experience all the better.

Much like The Fog (1980) the other day, I seem to easily watch this without tiring of it. I told my daughter that I have been watching House since I was a kid. It was always available. HBO, VHS, cable, and satellite even at times; the film hasn't faded into obscurity. It's too bad In Search of Darkness didn't credit it.