Movie Monday - The Funhouse

The Funhouse (1981)

[Elizabeth Berridge; Shawn Carson; Cooper Huckabee; Largo Woodruff; Miles Chapin; Kevin Conway; Herb Robins]

Plot: Teenage fun begets terror when two young couples spend the night inside a creepy carnival funhouse, where even the most harmless of objects can take on a distorted and sinister glare. Things really heat up when the kids play witness to a brutal murder at the hands of a disfigured killer who traps them inside with no way out and forces them to relive their waking nightmare. Directed by Tobe Hooper.

This film is one of the early 80s slasher flicks that has never had mainstream appeal, but is a classic to horror fans.

The story itself is simple, kids doing things they shouldn't be doing in a creepy, scary carnival funhouse. Of course, what makes it a slasher flick is that this particular funhouse is home to a deformed, deranged, murderous madman.

There are some very creepy/scary scenes in this movie, enough that I have been drawn back to it again and again. The climax of the film also has some major wince-inducing moments you have to see to believe.

I read the novelization of this film, which was written by Dean Koontz. It goes into more depth in regards to some of the characters, which makes some of their odd actions in the movie make more sense. This is especially true for the role of Amy's mother. She comes off as quite aloof and uncaring in the movie, with no explanation as to why. The details of her past are in the book, but I can see where it would have all been too much for a 90-odd minute movie to handle.

All in all, this is a good horror flick for fans of late 70s/early 80s stuff. Non-horror fans might not be so impressed.

A remake is supposedly in the works, with Eli Roth involved.