Time: 89 Minutes
Age Rating: R18 – Violence, sexual themes & content that may disturb
Cast:
Sid Haig as Captain Spaulding
Bill Moseley as Otis
Sheri Moon Zombie as Baby
Karen Black as Mother Firefly
Director: Rob Zombie

An empty fuel tank and a flat tire lead two couples down a terror-riddled road to the House of 1000 Corpses. “House of 1000 Corpses” is at its core a story of family – a cast of twisted individuals who, with each slash of a throat or stab thru the chest, add bodies to their sick human menagerie.

Rob Zombie is a very divisive director. I had only watched his Halloween movies, which were polarising in their own rights, and so I wanted to watch his other movies. I started with his debut film, House of 1000 Corpses, and I thought it was pretty good despite some issues.

The writing is very flawed and messy. The premise is pretty weak, and based on the three movies I’ve now seen from Zombie, he does have a bad dialogue problem at times. I am also a little mixed about the ending. That being said, House of 1000 Corpses is definitely paying homage to 1970s horror grindhouse movies, particularly the classic Texas Chainsaw Massacre (with it being about a family of killers torturing a group of people), and he does succeed at that. It is sleazy and dark, yet campy and energetic. It has a rather demented charm to it, with the dark humour and eccentric characters. A lot of it is mean spirited for sure, but it is still entertaining, and you can tell that Zombie is having fun with this. It doesn’t overstay its welcome with its short runtime of 89 minutes.

The acting isn’t really the best, with most of the flaws being seen in the acting of the victim characters. However, the killers are entertaining, with Karen Black, Bill Moseley and Sheri Moon giving memorable performances and doing well at capturing the bizarre tone of the film. Sid Haig was the standout for me, he’s the comic relief and was entertaining, but was also effectively menacing. I just wish there was a lot more of him in the movie.

This is Rob Zombie’s directorial debut and for all its faults, with House of 1000 Corpses, he quickly establishes a very strong and distinct style not seen by any other filmmaker. Still, you can tell that he’s experimenting a lot with his style here. Zombie clearly has a love for 1970s horror grindhouse, and he captures that aesthetic perfectly. The use of grainy camera footage, the production, costume and set design, hairstyling and makeup are all on point. It is a really filthy and gritty film, while also being an incredibly colourful film. The crazed editing with weird footage does threw me off a little but does elevate the surreal elements, even if some of it could be mistaken for a Rob Zombie music video. Unsurprisingly, it also brings the gore that you would expect given the title. The music is co-scored by Rob Zombie (of course), and you’ll particularly like it if you already enjoy Zombie’s music.

House of 1000 Corpses isn’t for everyone. It is messy and derivative, the writing is rough around the edges and Rob Zombie is still figuring out his style. That said, it’s still an effective and energetic throwback to 70s grindhouse movies, with a distinct direction, and some memorable performances. It’s a bold debut for Zombie, and I’m curious to check out even more of his work.