Monday, November 3, 2014

THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE / Academy Pictures Corp. - 1973

It's Monday HELL with Tabonga, here at The Dungeon!.. This is our 1900th post since we started this awesome blog, and, we ain't even finished with our pile of wild 'n' weird movies for you! Today, I'm going to feature another horror flick starring the great Roddy McDowall as the ghost chaser Benjamin Fischer, filmed on location in Blenheim Palace, Woodstock, Oxfordshire, England. He's part of a research team consisting of him, a physicist and his wife, and, a young female psychic who's the sole survivor from a previous visit to the notorious Hell House.

Eegah!! sent over a creepy sound clip from this flick for our earjoyment, sooooo, you can push the big red 'GO' button located there by our demonic statuette, NOW, Ralphie The Tarantula!.. Here's a taste of... THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE!

Here's the team on their way to spend some time in the very mysterious Hell House...

Once inside, they seem to feel an ominous presence lurking in the shadows. That's Clive (THE HEADLESS GHOST) Revill as Dr. Barrett, Clive has a very respectable 176 acting credits!

They hook up the psychic, Florence, played by Pamela (THE INNOCENTS) Franklin, to see if she can contact a spirit. They're recording the whole thing on a tape recorder.

Then, at dinner, the spirit shows up to shake the crap out of the table and nearly electrocutes the doctor! The doc makes it to a wall to get away from the debris and a huge freaking mirror falls on him!.. Daaang!

While exploring the depths of the place, they come across this poor soul that died while being chained up to a wall!

Things get interesting when the doctor's wife, Ann, played by Gayle (THE WILD ANGELS) Hunnicutt, tries to put the make on Benjamin while being possessed, and, the doc is watching from a balcony!

The evil spirit then has sex with Florence in her bed, making her a little loco in the cabeza! Florence will die soon thereafter...

The doctor orders a machine to measure the electro-magnetic presence of the spirit.

The dial pegs out and blows up in the face of the doctor as all Hell breaks out!

Benjamin has come to the conclusion that this room has the answers to puzzle, him and Ann are the only survivors now!

After some terrifying events they find an entrance to a room. There, they find the dead owner of the house, Emeric Belasco, the cause of all the death and destruction. Benjamin cuts the pants leg to show that Belasco was only half a man! Dungeon hero Michael Gough plays the evil Belasco in an uncredited role.

We're back on Wednesday with more fun from Eegah!!

6 comments:

Grant said...

Pamela Franklin is such a great "horror queen." She doesn't always get her due, even from horror fans.

And there's that clever cameo at the end, by another great horror actor (I won't spoil it.)

Lacey said...

Tabonga, good review of one of the great horror films of the 1970s. However, in the third picture that is Pamela Franklin in the background, between Roddy Mcdowall & Clive Revill. Gayle Hunnicutt did play Revill's wife, that is just not her in the picture.

Keep up the good work and thank you again.

TABONGA! said...

Thank you Lacey - I corrected the mistake, of course, that's definitely Pamela there in the background, durr...

Dick said...

Wonderful post - this is great movie and IMO one of the best horror movies of the 70's. BYW, Pamela and her husband now own & operate a mystery book store in Los Angeles.

TABONGA! said...

Nice piece of info on Pamela, thanks Dick!

Richard S. said...

Yet another great scary tale from the pen of Richard Matheson!!!

Monster Music

Monster Music
AAARRGGHHH!!!! Ya'll Come On Back Now, Y'Hear??