By Melissa Antoinette Garza
“This house will be here long, long after you have departed.”- Arnold (Burgess Meredith)
Ben (Oliver Reed) and Marion (Karen Black) are the ideal happily married couple. They have a young son Dave (Lee Montgomery) who they both adore. Soon an opportunity to rent a beautiful house comes up. The eccentric owners Arnold (Burgess Meredith) and his sister Roz (Eileen Heckart) paint a strange almost utopia image when describing their home. Though the place does need maintenance and part of the agreement requires Marion to tend to the old woman who resides upstairs behind a locked door, they readily agree to the deal.
At first, all is calm. Ben even invites his Aunt Elizabeth (Bette Davis) to move in with them. She quickly comes aboard and the four begin tending and repairing the house. Ben and Dave repair the swimming pool and soon jump in. They both play around, but suddenly Ben’s demeanor changes. They begin to play roughhouse and Ben starts trying to drown his son. Dave fights to safety and runs away both fearful and confused. Later, Ben is also confused. He doesn’t understand where the anger stemmed from. Marion attempts to console him, but he explains that nightmares that had previously plagued him about his mother’s funeral had returned. Dreams of a strange pale man driving a hearse have been making him crazy.
Things begin to get even worse. Aunt Elizabeth transforms merely overnight from a vibrant older woman to a sickly disoriented creature. Marion who was once sympathetic and nurturing suddenly becomes distant and cold. She is only driven by tending to the old woman upstairs and caring for the house. Odder still, the house seems to repair itself. Flowers that were dead spring alive. Damaged and old construction turns new and bright.
Soon, it is evident to Ben that he must take his family and flee. Something just isn’t right in the house. Marion who has grown severely attached refuses. He attempts to reason, but she seems unreasonable. She is almost possessed by the house.
The seventies were the optimal time for horror. This is said often and it is because of films like this that it rings true. The atmosphere and pace are perfect. The characters are sympathetic. The setting is tremendous and one could not ask for a better cast.
Oliver Reed is magnificent in the part. He portrays Ben as a caring and calm father who is frightened by anger he is obviously unaccustomed to.
Lee Montgomery, who later excelled in films such as THE MIDNIGHT HOUR (1985), INTO THE FIRE (1988) and MUTANT (1984) stars brightly as the scared little boy. Many times in horror, child actors can be annoying and really slow the pace of an otherwise great film. Montgomery is a rare exception that added in a role where others would have easily taken away.
Of course, it goes without saying that Bette Davis was remarkable. She always had the ability to capture a scene even as she stayed silent in the background. One of the few that owned the “IT” factor, it is always a treat to see her on film.
Finally, Karen Black does wonderful in the lead. She invokes both loathing and sympathy. At times, certain scenes were difficult to sell. They were implausible or just too weird. Still, Black rose above it and made each one believable.
On a side note, it is said that THE SHINING (1980) was inspired by BURNT OFFERINGS. That is quite an understatement. The plot the two follow are nearly identical. Though with Stanley Kubrick’s vision the outcome of “The Shining” has a much different feel than this production, the parallels in the actual stories are too similar. One must wonder if the well-known animosity Reed felt for Jack Nicholson was rooted in how alike the two tales were. If so, maybe the correct person to have pause with was Stephen King.
Whatever the case, BURNT OFFERINGS is a wonderful production that has more than one genuinely creepy moment. The conclusion is one of the best filmed. Even if one is not surprised, they will certainly revel in the chills it creates.
Scared Stiff Rating: 8/10
Great movie and I told Geno about it years ago!