The House on Sorority Row (Mark Rosman, 1983)

I'm not sure if its a good or bad thing that I keep forgetting the twists and turns during the last 20 minutes of The House on Sorority Row, but I guess it's a good thing that I keep returning to this classic - and very generic - slasher just a few years after the big boom of slice and dice cinema hit the world. The legend says that after the big slasher craze created by Halloween almost 1000 typical slashers was made until the late eightes, and that might be true. Many is probably lost by now, but a few - liek this one - still keeps coming back time after time. 

So why this one? It's hardly original, the kills isn't the most spectacular ones in the genre, no superstars made their first appearance here ( just like Kevin Bacon in Friday the 13th, Jason Alexander and Holly Hunter in The Burning - and lets not forget Brad Pitt in Cutting Class). I personally think The House on Sorority Row survives because it has a good rhythm. It delivers something every five minute or so - a kill, boobs, prank, laugh. That's the magic behind it. It's just a safe movie to watch. The location looks good, the set-up is almost mindboggingly stupid  - but works because it's so stupid. 

A group of sorority sisters wants to celebrate their graduation and decides to stay in the house and let the party be there. Well, that's not okay according to their stiff house mother, Mrs Slater. So what to do? Yes, a good old prank! With a gun. Yeah, threaten the old poor lady with the gun, make her swim out in a pool - and then the gun goes of - BAM - killing her! No one of these pretty young faces wants to end up in prison and they hide the body and continue to prepare for the party! Well, well... we all know what's gonna happen. "Someone" shows up and starts killing them and their friends - one by one!

Yeah, it's retarded. But it's directed with flair and talent from Mark Rosman, has some decent kills - which could be bloodier, but still feels quite nasty - and an adorable cast of nude girls and hunky boys. Just like a real slasher should be. The suspense is actually not bad at all during the last half, when the killer takes the stalking up a notch and the bodycount rises. The cast is likeable - which not necessary means talented - and it delievers a spooky, weird twists (or a bunch of them!) during the end. Not bad at all, but enough confusing for me to forget it all the time. 

Maybe that's why I keep watching it. I'm expecting something else, another ending (probably the ending from Happy Birthday to Me!), and then when the finale is better than I expected it to be, my enthusiasm rises once again and not long thereafter I will forget it and then I can keep watching it for an eternity.

Like a damn geeky gold fish. 

Comments

[Thomas Sueyres]

I don't remember that shot from the film. I revisited it a year or two ago. Is there another version out there that I'm missing?

[Fred Anderson]

Thomas: it's a very short clip during the end, from a hallucination/vision or something the final girl have. I doubt it's something they'd cut :)

[Megatron]

"I'm not sure if its a good or bad thing that I keep forgetting the twists and turns during the last 20 minutes of The House on Sorority Row, but I guess it's a good thing that I keep returning to this classic - and very generic - slasher just a few years after the big boom of slice and dice cinema hit the world."

I thought this film was very forgettable, namely because of what you said......very generic.

The remake was actually more entertaining (at times) I felt but the remake.......has an overblown ending.....at least to me.

"Many is probably lost by now,"

Sadly, you may be right.....

"no superstars made their first appearance here ( just like Kevin Bacon in Friday the 13th, Jason Alexander and Holly Hunter in The Burning - and lets not forget Brad Pitt in Cutting Class)."

WHAT???

I knew about Bacon but not Pitt, Hunter, Alexander.....thanks Fred.

"I personally think The House on Sorority Row survives because it has a good rhythm. It delivers something every five minute or so - a kill, boobs, prank, laugh."

Yeah, it has a good rhythm.....and goodlooking girls.

"Yeah, it's retarded. But it's directed with flair and talent from Mark Rosman, has some decent kills - which could be bloodier, but still feels quite nasty - and an adorable cast of nude girls and hunky boys."

Yeah, Rosman did a good job but from a technical standpoint.....Stewart Hendler did a better job, just look at that opening scene in Sorority Row(2009), loooooooonnnggg tracking shot to make it look it was done in one take.

It works, and sets it all up in a very fast way.

But like you said.....cast is very nice.

"The suspense is actually not bad at all during the last half, when the killer takes the stalking up a notch and the bodycount rises."

Yeah, and he wears some weird clown outfit or something, looking like deranged harlequin.

The last half has nice atmosphere and reminds me of some scenes in Tourist Trap(1979).

"Maybe that's why I keep watching it. I'm expecting something else, another ending (probably the ending from Happy Birthday to Me!), and then when the finale is better than I expected it to be, my enthusiasm rises once again and not long thereafter I will forget it and then I can keep watching it for an eternity."

Ending isn´t that bad.....has a nice set up for a sequel, a little annoying just like the remake but.....really, let´s not complain, shall we?

"Like a damn geeky gold fish."

hahahhahah...I have the same problem.

Good review, when I saw this, I thought good old fashioned fun, nothing more.