Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- irreverent
- macabre
- frantic
- late night horror marathon
- cult movie night
What critics said
Critics generally found the film visually bright and competently performed, with entertaining comic energy but an arbitrary, familiar haunted-house screenplay and limited scares.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Roger's Vietnam experiences return as monstrous apparitions and force him to confront his guilt.
The aunt's house generates personalized horrors, resists Roger's presence, and drives the central conflict.
Zombie attacks, grotesque creatures, and nightmare sequences are repeatedly framed through tongue-in-cheek humor.
Roger is a horror novelist whose writing career and attempted novel are tied to his Vietnam experiences and personal collapse.
Films like House, and why
Poltergeist
shared haunted-house horror, supernatural family trauma, and comedic genre treatment
The Return of the Living Dead
shared zombie comedy, bizarre practical creature effects, and irreverent horror tone
The Frighteners
shared surreal haunted-house imagery, dark humor, and psychological confrontation with the past
The Gate
shared 1980s horror-comedy sensibility, monstrous domestic spaces, and offbeat practical effects
Movie Details
- Director
- Steve Miner
- Release Date
- 1985-12-06
- Runtime
- 92 min
- Rating
- 6.2 / 10 (642)
Cast
- William Katt
- George Wendt
- Richard Moll
- Kay Lenz
- Mary Stavin
- Michael Ensign
- Erik Silver
- Mark Silver
- Susan French
- Alan Autry
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Shout! Factory Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is House about?
- A guilt-ridden Vietnam veteran and horror novelist battles a bizarre haunted house where war trauma takes monstrous form.
- What is House like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of House as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is House violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in House as graphic.
- What did critics think of House?
- Critics generally found the film visually bright and competently performed, with entertaining comic energy but an arbitrary, familiar haunted-house screenplay and limited scares.
- Which films are like House?
- Films with a similar feel include Poltergeist, The Return of the Living Dead, The Frighteners, and The Gate.
- How long is House?
- House runs 92 minutes.
- Where can I watch House?
- In United States, House streams on Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Shout! Factory Amazon Channel.
