Steinesongo Too many fans seem to be blown away

Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Whitech It is not only a funny movie, but it allows a great amount of joy for anyone who watches it.

Micah Lloyd Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.

Sam Panico The Rolfs' summer vacation has brought them to a ruined mansion (the Dunsmuir Mansion, which was also used for Phantasm) somewhere in the country. Marian and Ben have a 12-year-old son named Davey and have brought along their beloved aunt Elizabeth. Why would they stay in this ancient abode? Well, it's cheap. Real cheap thanks to the kindness of the Allardyce family, who only require that their mother stay upstairs and that the family provide her with meals all summer long. They will never see her or probably even speak to her, a deal that Marian agrees to quickly. The house is just too great and she's fallen in love with it.Love soon turns to the obsession that only comes from 1970's horror fiction. Soon, she's dressing like a Victorian woman and not speaking to her family, content to sit near Mrs. Allardyce's bedroom and stare at old photos.The house keeps getting cleaner and better looking the more weirdness happens, like windows locking shut, accidents all over the place, nightmares of an evil chauffeur and Ben flipping out and nearly killing his son while swimming and Aunt Elizabeth dying.Marian won't even leave the house for the funeral, so Ben angrily declares that he will leave without her. His attempts to escape with his son ends when a tree blocks the road and his wife becomes the dreaded chauffeur, turning the once strong man into jelly. Yet after the pool itself tries to kill Davey, Marian declares that they should leave once she tells Mrs. Allardyce goodbye.Easier said than done. She disappears into the house and when Ben goes to confront the old woman, he learns that she and his wife are now the same person. He's thrown from the attic window in a scene that ends the trailer to the film and even Davey is killed when a chimney falls on him, because the life of children was quite cheap in the movies of the 70's. To paraphrase John Mulaney, back then "no one cared about kids. I grew up before children were special. I did. Very early '80s, right before children became special."The house is now brand new as the Allardyce family and the chauffeur celebrate mother's return. The photos on the wall — all of the home's past victims — now include Ben, Davey and Aunt Elizabeth.Curtis was a fan of the book, except for the open ending which he thought was unfilmable. His ending is much different, as is the inclusion of the chauffeur, who is based on a childhood trauma where he watched a driver laugh during his grandmother's funeral.Some people dislike this film because of its slow pace, but others — like Stephen King — love it. I'm on the fence. I love parts of this, but the pace is truly glacial.Read more at http://bit.ly/2megicO

icaptainchaos Not the best film ever made (not that it was meant to be), but Oliver Reed was very good, Karen Black was a bit strange ....But the Chauffeur took the whole film to a creepy level beyond creepy.I remember seeing this when I was quite young, and that chauffeur caused endless nightmares.Certainly worth a watch for the whole atmosphere.

donbanf I don't believe I've ever reviewed this movie on IMDb. It is certainly better than it often gets credit for. One of my all time horror favorites. Definite spoilers in here if you haven't seen it. A bit of trivia: Lee Montgomery, who plays the son in this movie later starred in "Dead of Night" with Joan Hackett wherein he plays her deceased son returned to life. A good scary TV movie available on DVD. Also, the main title theme in Burnt Offerings is "Memories of a Lifetime" which is also the line that Karen Black utters as she pores over the photos upstairs in the mansion. Another bit of trivia, Dan Curtis, the director can be seen in one of the photos in the collection. He's wearing a top hat I believe and has a rather scary/scared expression on his face. Yes it is dated. I saw this in its original theatrical release in 1976. A good movie that is better on the big screen because of its camera-work. Almost anything from the 70's is going to look dated now, particularly how many station wagons there are! (see the original Stepford Wives) The "fuzziness" is deliberate--Dan Curtis used "gauze" type filters over the cameras to give it a dreamlike effect. This was also done by Alfred Hitchcock in "Vertigo". I still like this movie. A lot of critics are not kind to it. But when I had it out on rental, I loaned it to a number of people and all of them liked it. I remember seeing this on network TV before the days of tape and DVD's and it really suffers on the small screen. But the widescreen DVD looks excellent, really good. The color and print have been restored for the DVD and it looks flawless in widescreen. Great music too by Bob Cobert, who did the music for the original Dark Shadows TV series. Anthony James was perfectly cast as the chauffeur, a character that can give me the absolute creeps watching this movie in broad daylight. I still to this day have a hard time watching the dream sequence where the chauffeur first appears. The music and photography are very eerie and unsettling. When he comes driving up the entrance to the mansion, oooh! His pale face, the sunglasses, not being able to see what's in those eyes. He represents death but he's scarier than a hooded grim reaper would be. You feel sympathy for the family, including the young boy as they are completely helpless tragic characters who will never "get out". The "chauffeur" has a special significance for me because of my grandfather working in the funeral business. He also represents an omen as he's a bad memory from a nightmare Ben has about the death of his mother and he comes back from the past, in an old car, in broad daylight where he shouldn't be. I believe he is foreshadowing the doom to come. The effects in this movie are good. The house "regenerating" itself looks very convincing and with no CGI. When Karen Black died, there was a film tribute to her in San Francisco, which I went to see. They showed this movie in actual 35 mm but the print was not a restored one I'm sorry to say. Color went in and out, some other minor glitches etc. but at least I got to see it on the big screen for the first time in a long time. It was nice to see Bette Davis getting a serviceable role in her later years--some complain she doesn't get to do enough in this film but I think she was good as always and got enough screen time. I don't think it could be made today with the subtlety that makes it so great. Oliver Reed gives a wonderful and sensitive performance and you feel for him as his wife can't see how the house is taking over her. It's a bit like The Shining, though this story and movie were made before Stephen King published his novel. I listened to the commentary on the DVD and was dismayed at how they badmouthed Reed, who isn't here to defend himself and who is great in this movie. One (two?) of the best lines in the movie: "Marion?" "I've been waiting for you Ben" which then lead to the GREAT ending which still shocks me. If you like horror with a more mysterious and subtle edge, this is the one.

LeonLouisRicci It is No Surprise that this Film Looks Like a TV-Movie, it is Dan Curtis Directing and Writing and that's what He Does. The Man Behind the Afternoon Soap Vampire Cult Phenom Dark Shadows and a Slew of Other Made for TV Horrors, this Theatrical Release did not Resonate like Some of the Others on the Tube.Fans are Divided on this one. It is a Methodically Paced Picture that Takes its Time Unfolding the Rather Slim Story of a House that Draws Energy from its Inhabitants and Refurbishes Itself with the Lifeforce. There is Some Creepiness at Play here and there are Moments of Tension, but the Movie is Too Long and Deliberate.Nothing is that Surprising, Including the Twist Ending, but it has Enough Suspense and Terror to Propel Viewers through to the Downbeat Ending. Oliver Reed and Karen Black are Always Interesting to Watch and They do Add Some Gravitas, but Bette Davis is a Non-Descript Cliché.Overall, Worth a Watch for Horror Buffs and those Willing to Go Along with the Languishing Pace. There are Some Rewards for the Stick-To-It Types.