Customer Reviews
A bit patchy, but still worth watching - By: Lou Knee, 11 Oct 2008 
I agree with much of what the last reviewer wrote, but I don't dislike this movie at alll. It is a bit lacking technicallly, but I certainly didn't think of turning it off. Screenplay just not quite lucid enough to make this a much better movie but it certainly has its moments. There is a fear factor there, & the voice projection scenes give it a bit of bite, or menace. I also liked the scientific spiele used by Revill, the sceptic physicist, who I thought was excellent. I'd guess that the makers of 'Ghostbusters' drew heavily on this film for their supernatural research terms & techniques. And yes there are real psychic & supernatural phenomena invetigators out there who actuallly use the kind of equipment Revill was using here, though I expect they are a little more compact than the 1973 models shown here. Did you see the size of that electro-magnetic field detector? How did he get it in the room? 3.5 stars, but I'm quite mean with my marks. Worth a watch for sure.
Botch job at Hell House.... - By: N. Barrett, 17 Feb 2008 I was reallly looking forward to this film, being a long time fan of supernatural tales, haunted house mysterious & Richard Matheson's previous excellent output (Twilight Zone, Poe adaptations, novels etc), I thought - how could I go wrong? This film can't fail.... regrettably, for me, it did - & I thought i'd write a little review (something I don't normallly do!) explaining why, as every other review here gives this film four (and mostly) five stars!
The film is a direct descendent from Shirley Jackson's amazing novel The Haunting of Hill House, Matheson probably thought he was paying tribute with the title of this movie (and it's 'borrowed' tropes & themes) but for this reviewer it stepped pretty close to plaigarism. The film also bears the mark of the superb Robert Wise adaptation of Jackson's novel 'The Haunting' which is easily the daddy of alll supernatural haunted house flicks & I would recommend Wise's immensely chilling film wholeheartedly to anyone who enjoyed this film.
The two problems as I see it are script & direction, am sure alll the actors would have acquitted themselves in a tighter, leaner production, with better atmosphere, subtler effects, more rounded characters, but Matheson's script is messy,and felt a little half baked.
We get hardly any expository scenes at the start detailing the house, the rich patron that initiates the experiment (there's the odd line about wanting to know about life after death & that's about it), any background detail on ANY of the characters, except that they're alll 'experts' in their fields. Mcdowell's character who went into Hell House when he was 15 & was the last surviving member of a previous team is NEVER questioned about his experiences or memories throughout the entire movie which seemed incredible to me! The relationship between Revill's investigator & wife is pretty threadbare, we know nothing of their history, what makes them tick. It's only due to the cast being pros that this film doesn't collapse under its own flimsiness.
The plot itself is, pretty much, an outright steal from Jackson, with a malevolent spirit choosing to pick on & channel one of the group for its own malevolent reasons. Pamela Franklin is fantastic though & that's why this film gets three stars from me, she's worth the price of admission alone! Mcdowell gives a nicely controlled/borderline creepy performance until the very end - where he flies into full on ham mode, it's a little embarassing to watch.
The shocks & scares of this movie are pretty weak to, from cutlery bouncing up & down, ectoplasm coming out of Franklin's fingers & some bed sheets being pulled around, the climactic reveal of a stuffed Ian Mckellan was the rather absurd icing on the cake. It should have taken pointers from some of the cream of the genre, far better to scare an audience with what you can't see, what you dread, than spell it out. If anyone unfamiliar with some of the classics of this genre I would recommend Wise's The Haunting, The Innocents (a superb retelling of the Turn of the Screw), The Signalman (an adaptation of Dicken's chilling ghost story), any of the tales of M. R. James, & - contrary to one of the other revewers here, The Others, which I thought was a remarkably astute re imagining of the classic english ghost story.
So I guess I'll be the one to go against the grain on this page & NOT recommend this film unless you're a genre completist or a huge Pamela Franklin fan. It's poorly structured, the characters are thinly drawn & some of the dialogue is downwright awful! Something I never thought i'd say about the otherwise excellent Matheson output (see I Am Legend, Stir of Echoes, Incredible Shrinking Man, Duel & many other wonders of cinema & literature). The direction is incredibly mundane, compare it to Wise's outstanding use of his set in the Haunting & you'll see what I mean.
Wrapping this up I would also like to point out this is only MY opinion, so have a read of the other comments too, & hey, maybe watch the movie yourself & make up your own mind! But if you haven't seen/read the above recommendations i'd urge everyone to track them down, superb examples of this neglected genre..... :o)
The ultimate haunted house film!!!!!!!!!!!! - By: carfaxabbey, 27 Mar 2006 
Three occult experts are hired by an aging millionaire to get proof that balasco house is haunted. The three are a physical medium, a psychic medium & a paranormal scientist. The house setting is eerie & ominus from the moment the experts arrive. No expensive special effects in this film, just genuine frights & some uncomfortable moments. (daniels ghost in the bedroom anyone?) I disagree with the last reviewers opinion on roddy mcdowell taking on the "roaring giant" I thought his performance was brilliant. All in alll you get value for money with this dvd unlike some recent expensive dvds. Try session 9 as well for another cheap dvd gem.
Avenging Hell House! - By: The Happy Chefs, 20 Sep 2005 
This is a great film, with a real 'avengers' feel to some of the production as Both John Hough (Director), Albert Fennel (Producer) & Robert Jones (Art Director) alll have avengers links.
The film is an enjoyable haunted house story with low key performances from Clive Revill (always great), Gayle Hunnicut & Pamela Franklin & a barnstorming performance from Roddy McDowell.
The are are elements of over direction in the film, but then again this is part of the appeal, the wealth of wide angle lenses adding to the fun.
Only let down by a somewhat silly ending, which Roddy Mcdowell managers to bluster through.
Still great film & definately worth a watch.
An Early Haunted House Movie! - By: no1filmaddict, 07 Aug 2005 The whole 'haunted house' theme for horror movies has been done many times, probably more than any other type of horror movie, & while this older one from the early 1970's does not have CGI special effects in every scene nor is there loads of blood & gore, it is still very scary, relying on timing & atmosphere to make it pretty creepy & eerie indeed.
An old man who has just bought an isolated mansion known to most people as Hell House, gathers a smalll group of three people; a scientist, a psychic medium & a man who was the only survivor of a previous experiment in the same house, & pays them to spend a couple of days inside the former mental asylum to try to discover what is going on there. Of course strange things begin to happen immediately & soon finding ou the truth is the last thing on everyone's mind - staying alive is the first prioity!
The smalll but well picked cast alll give good performances, with Clive Revill as the rather sceptic scientist Mr Barrett & Gayle Hunnicutt as his wife, Ann Barrett who comes along for the trip. Pamela Franklin plays the psychic Florence Tanner who is used by the spirits in the house as a medium & who is also attacked by a killer cat. And Roddy McDowalll plays the only survivor of the last visit to the house, Benjamin Franklin Fischer who is positively spooky himself at times.
Overalll, while 'The Legend Of Hell House' may seem a little dated when you watch it now, especiallly in the world of CGI special effects that exists today, however it still manages to be pretty scary, creating tension & suspence through atmosphere & timing. If you are a fan of horror films then i would recommend that you give this film ago. Unfortunately though there are no extras to speak of on the DVD, other than a theatrical trailer so if you do buy it then you will only be buying it for the film. However don't let this put you off.
