House of the Damned

IMDb RATING

5.2/10

742

YOUR RATING

Merry Anders, Richard Crane, Ron Foster, and Erika Peters in House of the Damned (1963)

An architect and his wife are staying in an empty castle in California. They are joined by an unhappily married lawyer and his wife. Things start getting strange when they spot a half man/half beast prowling around the house and keep seeing a headless woman wandering the grounds.

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B-Horror Horror Mystery Thriller

An architect and his wife encounter bizarre occurrences as they survey a mansion built by an eccentric heiress.An architect and his wife encounter bizarre occurrences as they survey a mansion built by an eccentric heiress.An architect and his wife encounter bizarre occurrences as they survey a mansion built by an eccentric heiress.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

5.2/10

742

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Trivia
Rochester Castle, built by the "crazy" heiress Priscilla Rochester, is a clear reference to the Winchester House in San Jose, CA. Sarah Winchester was the main heir to the Winchester Repeating Arms fortune. She continuously built onto her house until her death, rumor had it to pacify the spirits of people killed by Winchester guns.

Goofs
When Ron Foster and Merry Anders set out on their journey to the House they are in a Chrysler, but arrive in a Plymouth. When they go to the estate agent to collect the keys the Chrysler is parked outside, but they return to the house in the Plymouth.

Quotes
Scott Campbell: I'd feel better if we had a gun.
Joseph Schiller: Lawyers don't carry guns, their clients do.

Connections
Featured in Win Win (2011)

User reviews35

Review

Featured review

6/10

This is a fun, above average addition to the genre if you enjoy horror films from this era

House of the Damned (1963) is a movie I watched off my DVR after recording it on FXM. The storyline follows an architect and his wife who has been asked to survey a house that was built for an eccentric lady. As they try to complete what should be a simple task they are approached by strange things within the house. Will the young couple be able to escape the house or will they be bound there forever?

This movie is directed by Maury Dexter (Hell's Belles) and stars Ron Foster (The Money Pit), Merry Anders (Tickle Me), Richard Crane (Behind Green Lights), Erika Peters (GI Blues) and Richard Kiel (Happy Gilmore).

This is an early 60s movie in black and white that honestly feels more 50s than 60s. The acting is very good and the dialogue is well written. The horror elements rely on circumstances and background music. They did do a good job creating a few good jump scares and there's some classic scream scenes (Psycho like).

Overall this is a fun, above average addition to the genre if you enjoy horror films from this era. I would score this a 6/10 and recommended seeing it once.