Plot: A samurai returns home and finds that another man is already there, giving his wife the business. Shigero (Tsuyuki Sasaki) if of course enraged by the sight of another man inside his beloved, so he draws his katana and lets loose the dogs of war. He stabs the other man in the dick, then beheads him with his trusted blade. But he doesn’t stop there, as he then slices up his wife and then turns the sword on himself. Over a hundred years later, that same home welcomes new tenants, an American family. Ted Fletcher (Edward Albert) can’t believe his luck, as the home is a dream and so affordable and he doesn’t mind the rumors about it being haunted. But soon that dream threatens to turn into a nightmare as strange things start to happen around the house. But is the house truly haunted, or is just cultural superstition?
Entertainment Value: This movie opens with a wild, fun prologue that finds the samurai catching his wife with another man. He goes hog wild with his katana and just carves the place up. The fun continues when the new family moves in and seems amazed that the house has doors, a kitchen, and a toilet. I guess their old place didn’t offer these kind of exotic amenities. But the movie soon turns into a family drama, though the ghostly spirits do provide the motivation. So this isn’t an eerie, scare you type ghost story, as the ghosts just want to ruin peoples’ lives, not scare them. I love the melodramatic arguing and temper tantrums in The House Where Evil Dwells, though I suspect most of those expecting a spooky ghost story might not. I think its a fun movie for unintended reasons of course, but a fun movie nonetheless. The House Where Evil Dwells might not be scary, but it has memorable moments and is a solid ride.
Susan George is on deck in this one and shows off her naked form a few times, including smushing her jugs on dudes during love scenes. Not just brief glimpses either, especially in an overly long, lingering sex scene right after the couple moves in. You also see some breasts in a couple other scenes, such as topless diving hijinks. The blood starts off hot with the whole samurai head removal and crotch stabbing, but then grinds to a halt. The finale offers some bloodshed however, including a spectacular decapitation. The memorable dialogue is solid here, with all the melodramatic arguments and the daughter whining about an awful face in her soup. The craziness is pretty much limited to the melodrama and a fantastic scene where Japanese speaking crabs invade the Fletcher household. Although seeing two untrained, middle aged white guys engage in a katana battle is pretty wild too.
Nudity: 3/10
Blood: 3/10
Dialogue: 4/10
Overall Insanity: 4/10
Marc Fusion 