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The House

2012
Dir. Monthon Arayangkoon

A recent emergence of striking fright flicks from Thailand has included a number of memorable titles such as Shutter, 4bia, Meat Grinder, Sick Nurses and The Victim – not forgetting of course the moody The Eye films. The House is the latest edition to this strikingly eclectic fold and it boasts the same unique tone and idiosyncrasies as its creepy peers. 

The serpentine story coils around investigative journalist Shalinee (Inthira Chaloenpura) who is commissioned to make a documentary about several doctors who brutally murdered their wives. As her investigation continues, she uncovers some odd connections and similarities between the killings, including the sinister fact that throughout the years, all the murderous doctors had at one time or another lived in the same house near the hospital. Despite warnings from spooked (and spooky) neighbours, Shalinee enters the house in search of further clues. What she finds there plunges her and her husband into a twisted nightmare full of bitterly vengeful ghosts and giant shadow demons. 

Echoing Ju-on (a cursed house) and Shutter (ghostly beings captured on camera), The House is full of long, slow takes and pans, with various nightmarish figures briefly glimpsed in the background, including the by now infamous trope of Asian horror cinema, a ghost-girl with long black hair covering her face. However, as the story unravels, director Arayangkoon hits his stride and ensures that the film moves into unexpected directions and consistently throws up twists and surprises to keep the viewer intrigued. His camera is rarely still as it floats wraith-like throughout the ominous titular dwelling place, down long hallways and around the heads of characters. For the most part things are subtle, though there are a number of perfectly timed jolts that rip through the eerie stillness, usually involving the protagonist slowly turning around to discover a disfigured ghost-girl all up in her grill. Amalgamating various traits from sub-genres such as haunted house films, possession films, ghost stories and, curiously enough found-footage/camcorder horror (when Shalinee films her tentative exploration), The House at times feels strangely familiar. That is of course until it veers down an unexpected route and really toys with our expectations.



The influence of American horror can also be felt, and certain scenes appear to echo the likes of Silent Hill, when the protagonist suddenly finds herself in what appears to be a whole other space in time, witnessing, or remembering, bloody encounters. There may be a few too many familiar aspects for some, but overall The House is a genuinely gripping and often surprising yarn with several effective twists in its tail. It also boasts a peculiar nightmare logic throughout, particularly in the moments when Shalinee attempts to escape from the house and burn it down, with everything working against her, including the petrol she doses everything with mysteriously drying up, and a terrifying encounter on a deserted bridge at night. As Shalinee, Inthira Chaloenpura aptly carries the film and is really convincing as a determined and focused individual, ambitious in her career, who finds herself descending into waking nightmares and possibly even madness.

At the heart of the story is a malign force that weasels its way into marriages and relationships, altering perspectives and turning partners against each other, with one always emerging as a maniacal killer. Interestingly, the wooden pillar that stands in the centre of the house, ensuring it doesn’t collapse around its inhabitants, is the source of the evil presence. It’s tempting to read this as a subversion or corruption of the home, or more specifically, the family unit, as it houses the evil force intent on destroying the sanctuary and solidarity of family and tearing down loving relationships.

The House is a twisted and twisting tale with some striking imagery, an irresistible central mystery and more than a few ominously atmospheric moments and jumps that should please those who like their horror with a little complexity and eventually doused in the red stuff.

The House (18) is available on DVD from 4th June courtesy of MVM.
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