Gutsycurene Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

Salubfoto It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

Plustown A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

Tayloriona Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

Scott LeBrun The Emeric Belasco mansion, otherwise known as Hell House, has proved to be a hotbed of paranormal activity. In fact, it's referred to as "the Mount Everest of haunted houses." Into this domain come a team, hired by the aged Rudolph Deutsch (Roland Culver). They consist of scientist Dr. Barrett (Clive Revill), mental medium Florence Tanner (Pamela Franklin), Dr. Barretts' tag along wife Ann (Gayle Hunnicutt), and physical medium Benjamin Franklin Fischer (Roddy McDowall), the only person to survive previous investigations of Hell House.Richard Matheson scripted, from his own novel "Hell House". He gives us a classic Old Dark House type of horror film with a bit of a difference. In this instance, it is fascinating to see whatever practical methods there may be for dealing with spirits. Also, the air in this story is thick with sexual tension. As Ann comes under the influence of the mansion, she becomes markedly seductive. The pacing is just right, never hurrying but not dawdling either. The atmosphere is perfect, with a nice low key music score credited to Delia Derbyshire and Brian Hodgson. There is a bit of gore, especially as poor Florence is violently victimized by spiritual forces more than once, but never a whole lot of it. Mathesons' script is intelligent and provocative, and those people unfamiliar with the novel won't be guessing where things are going before they're supposed to.There's an absolute minimum of characters here, and the actors all do wonderful jobs. Top billed Franklin is appealing and impassioned, Revill is solid as a man who's not that much of a believer, Hunnicutt is equal parts alluring and sympathetic, and McDowall is superb as the man who's given the task of purveying the necessary exposition. It's neat to watch him as he comes to his climactic realizations. Michael Gough has a quick, uncredited cameo at the conclusion."The Legend of Hell House" is very well done and is worthy of ones' attention, whether they see it for the first time or rediscover it.Eight out of 10.

lathe-of-heaven I'll keep this REAL simple because many others here have already described the excellent qualities of this classic Horror film. I will mention again that the Blu-ray Restoration that they did is truly stunning. It looks beautiful.Atmospheric as Hell!Creepy-@ss Scary...Absolutely LOVELY cinematography.Effective, taut direction.Excellent acting.Very beautiful lighting and set design.And, the soundtrack REALLY helps rack up the tension.If you like Supernatural Retro-Horror films, especially effective ones about Haunted Houses, and ones that are taken DEAD seriously... then you should really enjoy this excellent, haunting, and chilling classic.

utgard14 An eccentric aging millionaire wants to be assured of the existence of life after death, so he has a physicist interested in the paranormal assemble a team to investigate a haunted mansion known as Hell House. The team consists of the physicist's wife and two psychic mediums, one of which was the sole surviving member of a previous team that investigated the house. The group plans to last a week inside and scientifically prove the existence of the after-life. Hell House, however, has other plans. Brilliant haunted house movie directed by John Hough and penned by the great Richard Matheson, who adapted his own novel for the screenplay. The novel and film bear some similarities to Shirley Jackson's "The Haunting of Hill House" which was itself made into the classic movie The Haunting. Hough's stylish direction is excellent. He creates a tense atmosphere with eerie music and sound effects, off-kilter camera angles, and effective scary moments throughout the film. Roddy McDowall and Pamela Franklin are standouts in the cast but Clive Revill and Gayle Hunnicutt are good, too. Michael Gough appears as part of the film's memorable climax. It's an exceptional horror film from a decade full of them. One of the best haunted house movies ever made. Best seen at night with all the lights out, of course.

prguy721 The Legend of Hell House was released the same year as the grand-daddy of horror films, The Exorcist, so it quietly slipped through the cracks. But it should not be overlooked as a most effective and entertaining movie that combines suspense, bumps in the night and eroticism without overdoing the gore. It also features fine performances, especially that of Pamela Franklin, and an above-average haunted-house story line. Hell House will keep you guessing all the way to the end. Something interesting to note is that apparently the MPAA hasn't reviewed the film since its release when it was given a PG rating. By today's standards, Hell House would definitely be rated PG-13.