maison du cauchemar (France), La casa fan-
Then Massaccesi stepped in. As with many other
tasma (Spain).
Filmirage productions, shooting took place in
New England. When he finds out that his
the United States—as Massaccesi explained,
little daughter Henrietta has killed the family cat,
filming abroad was far less expensive than in
Sam Baker punishes her severely, but soon he and
Italy—and on the cheap: Lenzi claimed the
his wife are horribly murdered. Boston, twenty
movie cost one billion lire. The crew was mini-
years later: Paul and his girlfriend Martha receive
mal: Lenzi’s wife Olga Pehar acted as script girl,
a strange radio call which leads them to the de-
and Massaccesi took on as director of photog-
serted house where Henrietta’s family once lived.
raphy during the last three days of filming in
There, they make acquaintance with a group of
Boston, after the titular d.o.p. Franco Delli Colli
radio amateurs who are camping nearby. Weird
had returned to Italy. According to the director,
things occur: the visitors are terrorized by the
“it was almost impossible to shoot under those
ghastly apparitions of Henrietta and her evil-
conditions, the budget was too small.” The cast
looking clown doll, and one of them meets a hor-
was an ensemble of unknown faces, except for
rible death. However, the police believe the killer
Lara Wendel (who would soon appear in
is a crazed man named Valkos. While their
another Filmirage flick, Killing Birds—Raptors)
friends stay at the house, Paul and Martha leave
and Donald O’Brien. Mary Sellers was a recur-
6 1988: La casa 3
Italian fotobusta for Umberto Lenzi’s La casa 3—Ghosthouse (1988).
ring presence in the company’s productions,
paura; the eerie lullaby which can be heard in
such as Deliria and Eleven Days, Eleven Nights.
the haunted house when the girl shows up (and
The screenplay—credited to the elusive
which hides a message if played backwards)
“Cinthia McGavin” but written solely by the di-
hints both at the typical giallo lullabies and at
rector2—is a hodgepodge of ideas, filtered
the “Satanic panic” around back- masking in the
through Lenzi’s own vision. “Terror, as far as I
early 980s; the mansion where the story takes
am concerned, stems exactly from the attach-
place recalls both The Amityville Horror and The
ment to reality,” he observed about his concept
Evil Dead (see the scenes in the basement); the
of the genre, while recalling the genesis of Ghost-
bit where a girl is cut in half by some sort of guil-
house. “The basic idea started from the docu-
lotine window (incongruously placed inside a
mented existence of paranormal activities so
room) comes from Superstition (98, James W.
that particularly sensitive people can have pre-
Robertson); the final appearance of Death as a
monitions of gruesome events that perhaps are
hooded, maggot- infested skeleton is a cheap
taking place in the opposite part of the world.
recreation of the climax in Inferno. There are
The strength of my film is that the premonition
also nods to Fulci’s L’aldilà and Quella villa ac-
was not made by a man, but by a radio. So you
canto al cimitero, from the scene where an un-
had a mechanical device which caught in the
fortunate guy falls into a pit of acid to the un-
airwaves the cry for help of a person who was
settling moment where Lara Wendel’s character
about to be killed.”3
notices the evil doll in a shop’s window; finally,
If the idea of a message intercepted through
the climax set in a cemetery’s crypt, where the
airwaves seems like an updating of a classic
young hero exhumes the still- preserved body of
Richard Matheson story, Long Distance Call,
Henrietta, buried with her doll by her side,
the list of “homages” draws from varied filmic
and sets them on fire, is a poor man’s riff on the
sources. The ghost of Henrietta, complete with
ending of Paura nella città dei morti viventi. The
a scary clown doll, comes from Operazione
few interesting ideas, such as a scene where a
1988: La casa 4
7
haunted room is filled with flying dolls and pil-
tanari’s score, blaming the film’s “great confusion
low feathers—Lenzi’s horror reimagining of a
and lack of accuracy.”4 But it reportedly proved
famous moment in Zéro de conduite (933, Jean
a solid box- office success, and was sold well
Vigo), perhaps?—are ruined by bottom- of-the-
abroad, including France, Jana and Spain. Mas-
barrel special effects.
saccesi soon set to work on La Casa 4. On his
The direction does not improve upon the
part, Lenzi directed another movie for Filmirage,
scarce originality and minimal budget. Lenzi
the thriller Paura nel buio—Hitcher in the Dark
doesn’t have Fulci’s visionary talent, and for
(989).
most of its running time he sticks to the movie’s
horror imagery- by-numbers—arms breaking
Notes
through walls, dead bodies behind doors, faucets
1. Manlio Gomarasca, Umberto Lenzi (Milan: Nocturno
dripping blood—with a stolid lack of imagina-
Libri, 200), 26.
tion. Overall, it is the prone sticking to 980s
2. Palmerini and Mistretta, Spaghetti Nightmares, 98.
U.S. body count horror that is most grating:
3. Gomarasca, Umberto Lenzi, 2.
once Italian Gothic was a matter of ladies in
4. G. Gs. [Giovanna Grassi], “Horror italiano,” Corriere
their nightgowns wandering through dark cor-
della Sera, August 20, 988.
5. According to the official Spanish ministerial data, it
ridors; in Lenzi’s film, it has become all about
was seen by 8,963 spectators and grossed an amount cor-
dumb teenagers with denim jackets and sneak-
responding to 3,460 Euro. (http:// infoicaa. mecd. es/
ers. It is not quite the same.
CatalogoICAA/ Peliculas/ Detalle?Pelicula= 9668)
Eventually, though, Ghosthouse found its
way to the home market as well. Distributor
La casa 4 (Witchcraft) (Witchery)
Achille Manzotti picked it up and retitled it La
D: Martin Newlin [Fabrizio Laurenti]. S
Casa 3, a title that artfully referred to The Evil
and SC: Daniele Stroppa; DOP: Gianlorenzo
Dead and Evil Dead II, released in Italy respec-
Battaglia (Eastmancolor Kodak, Telecolor); M:
tively as La Casa (House) and La Casa 2. The
Carlo Maria Cordio (Ed. Idra Music); E:
reference to a “house” in the title was common
Rosanna Landi; Casting: Paul
Werner [Werner
to many horror movies released over the course
Pochath]; ArtD: Alex Colby [Massimo Antonello
of the decade, starting with Superstition, which
Geleng]; MU: Maurizio Trani; AD: Allen Don-
came out as La casa di Mary. Even Massaccesi’s
ner; STC: Brian Ricci; C: John Wynn; AC: Camillo
Buio Omega (979) was re- released as In quella
Sabatini; SO: Keith Young; SP: Peter Bates; AE:
casa Buio omega, to jump on the bandwagon.
David Shaw; SS: Laura Curreli; G: Paolo Tiberti,
This led to a series of sometimes bizarre reti-
Franco Micheli; El: Marcello Montarsi, Ben
tlings: for instance, Steve Miner’s House (98)
Miller; PrM: Julie Duncan; Stunts: John Mason;
came out as Chi è sepolto in quella casa? (Who
Mix: Michael Barry. Cast: David Hasselhoff
is Buried in That House?) and Harley Cokeliss’
(Gary), Linda Blair (Jane Brooks), Catherine
Dream Demon was retitled La casa al n° 13 in
Hickland (Linda Sullivan), Annie Ross (Rose
Horror Street.
Brooks), Hildegarde Knef (Lady in Black), Leslie
Lenzi was initially credited as “Humphrey
Cumming (Leslie), Bob [Robert] Champagne
Humbert,” an Anglicized pseudonym which
(Freddie Brooks), Rick Farnsworth (Jerry Gior-
echoed the name of the narrator (Humbert
dano), Michael Manchester (Tommy Brooks),
Humbert) in Vladimir Nabokov’s novel Lolita.
Frank Cammarata (Tony Giordano), Victoria
It seemed one of Filmirage’s typical cheap mar-
Biggers (Secretary), Ely Coughlin (Satan), Kara
keting tricks (which even Fulci was not spared,
Lynch (Cindy), James [Jamie] Hanes (Jon),
when Le porte del silenzio was credited abroad
Richard Ladenburg (Sheriff ), George Stevens
to “Henry Simon Kittay”), and according to the
(Fisherman). PROD: Aristide Massaccesi for
director he sued the producers and had his name
Filmirage Production Group (Rome); PS: Annie
restored: in the Italian prints, the credits carry
Jurgielewicz; PSe: Sophie Ali; PAcc: Walter Kelly.
his real name. However, “Humphrey Humbert”
Country: Italy. Filmed in Scituate and Cohasset,
was an a.k.a. Lenzi had used earlier in his career,
Massachusetts. Running time: 9 minutes (m.
for instance on I tre sergenti del Bengala (964),
20). Visa n. 8467 (.26.988); Rating: all au-
so there is a chance he was aware of the stunt
diences. Release dates: 2..988 (West Germany),
from the beginning.
7..989 (Japan), 7.6.989 (USA—Home video),
Critics were severe: the Corriere della Sera
8.6.989 (Italy); Distribution: Artisti Associati/
praised only the photography and Piero Mon-
Gruppo Berna. Domestic gross: ,283,94,000 lire.
8 1988: La casa 4
Also known as: Ghosthouse 2 (UK); Encuentro
Wilder’s Fedora, which also featured a mysteri-
con la maldad (Spain); Démoniaque présence
ous retired actress. The cast also included David
(France); Hexenbrut (West Germany).
Hasselhoff (still very popular in Italy after the
A photographer, Gary, and his girlfriend
TV series Knight Rider) and Linda Blair, who
Leslie arrive at an isolated house on an isle near
ends up again playing a possessed soul. For the
the coast of Massachusetts to conduct research on
main female role Massaccesi cast Leslie Cum-
a past legend. Supposedly, centuries earlier, a
mins, on Lattanzi’s suggestion: she had been in
pregnant witch took refuge there from her perse-
Killing Birds and had a brief liaison with the di-
cutors and then committed suicide by throwing
rector. Massaccesi would regret the choice, given
herself out of a window. In recent times the place
Cummins’ utter lack of acting skills.
was inhabited only by a retired actress. Other
In the end, Lattanzi gave up directing the
people arrive on the island: a pregnant young
film—or Massaccesi decided he was unfit for the
woman, Jane Brooks, who is looking to buy the
movie: Lattanzi’s version on why he left the proj-
house and convert it into a hotel, accompanied
ect is rather vague and unconvincing. The pro-
by her parents and her little brother Tommy; a
ducer’s old acquaintance Luigi Cozzi came
real estate agent, Jerry, and an architect, Linda.
aboard, only to resign after just two weeks of
Soon the group find themselves stranded on the
pre- production work: “The story didn’t attract
island, after a mysterious lady in black has dis-
me, I found it too predictable and banal. Mas-
patched the boatman who brought them there.
saccesi wanted me to make a film which I didn’t
The guests start dying in horrible ways, and Leslie
feel like mine, and without any special reason I
finds out that the witch is still out for vengeance…
decided to give up directing a horror movie
The good commercial results of La casa 3
aimed at the small screen.”4 Cozzi went on to
convinced Aristide Massaccesi and distributor
make his own project, Paganini Horror, and
Achille Manzotti to follow along the same route,
Massaccesi replaced him at the eleventh hour
which resulted in Filmirage putting in the
with Fabrizio Laurenti, a debuting director who
pipeline another sequel in name only to La casa.
had made an impressive 30-minute vampire film
Umberto Lenzi had already submitted to the
shot in Super8, The Immigrant (98), about a
producers an idea for La casa 4, “a story in the
Transylvanian immigrant in New York who
vein of Psycho, about a woman who is released
wakes up 80 years later in the East Side, thirsty
from jail and goes to live in a villa where years
for blood, which leads to a series of grotesque
earlier bloody murders were committed, but
vicissitudes. The Immigrant had won the “Gab-
they didn’t even take it into consideration. They
biano d’oro” prize at the 987 Bellaria Film Fes-
told me … that these films made no money,
tival, and gathered favorable reviews in the
and that they had no intention whatsoever of
press.
making a sequel. In fact, they not only made La
La casa 4 tries hard to pose as an American
casa 4, but also La casa 5!”
horror movie. The vengeful witch and the ref-
Even though the only credited scriptwriter
erences to the Massachusetts witch hunts recall
is Daniele Stroppa, Claudio Lattanzi claimed he
among other things James W. Robertson’s Su-
had a part in concocting the scenario. “Daniele
perstition, the character of the “lady in black” is
wrote all the screenplay, but I remember going
borrowed from Dan Curtis’ Burnt Offerings
to h
is place in the evening, to write the story to-
(976), the creative graphic deaths and mutila-
gether, because I had to direct it.”2 It was Lattanzi
tions take place in an extradimensional hell just
who suggested Massaccesi to aim high for the
like in Hellraiser, and the final bit of possession
cast: “I kept telling Aristide: ‘Come on, now that
is the price to be paid to The Exorcist. But
you have made a leap in quality and you are un-
Stroppa’s script adds even more fuel to the fire.
dergoing a felicitous period, why don’t we cast
The theme of the victims being symbolically
Bette Davis for the role of the witch?’ We talked
punished for the deadly sins they represent re-
again a few days later, and he told me: ‘You
calls La plus longue nuit du diable (97, Jean
know, maybe I really have a chance to have Bette
Brismée), the notion that the hotel is built on
Davis, because I know people who know her …
three doors of hell (respectively greed, luxury
what a shot it would be!’ and I: ‘Well, if Bette
and ire) draws from The Sentinel and L’aldilà,
Davis is in it, I’m making the movie for free!’”3
and the witch’s look was Lattanzi’s homage to
Eventually the producer had to settle with Hilde-
Inferno: “I liked the idea of showing the witch
garde Knef, possibly because of her role in Billy
Argento- style … with this long black cloak,
1988: Killing
9
while Daniele thought it was bullshit!.”6 Just like
would recycle it again for La Casa 5 (990)—La
Argento did in Opera, incidentally, the leading
casa 4 looks more polished than other Filmirage
man is dispatched in the epilogue.
productions. Its appearance misled the film
The very insistence on Catholic guilt makes
critic in the Corriere della Sera, who took it for
for a rather morbid subtext. “It is a childish su-
a genuine U.S. production and (perhaps exactly
perstition of the human spirit that virginity is a
because of this) reviewed it rather favorably, rec-
virtue and not the barrier that separates igno-
ommending it to genre fans “who will enjoy …
rance from knowledge,” a line of dialogue states
the usual American- style doggerel on family
near the beginning, and Leslie’s virginity—
neuroses.”7 The film played theatrically in Italy
which turns her into the “final girl” as the rules
Italian Gothic Horror Films (1980-1989) Page 48