House of Mystery

I saw this film a few years ago, and couldn't believe how frightening it is. I don't think I've seen anything that has given me the creeps quite so much. I also like the Irene Handl one-liner to her policeman husband, to the effect: "You'd better take your time going round there, so you don't get hurt". But seriously, the use of flashbacks within flashbacks, and the ending, also.

I saw this movie many years ago and thought it lost, but recently it showed up on a station listed but just out of range, so it's still around somewhere. Won't one of you obscurity specialists find it and put it on the market? An hour long (and thus consigned to the late show from word go) it's the best of Vernon Sewell's numerous little ghost stories. A pair of newlyweds show up to buy a house, and a shadowy lady tells them, in flashback, of the place's history. She starts with another couple who put up with insidious supernatural events, and came to learn, in a flashback within a flashback, the nasty happenings that turned this place into what it is. The finale, though not terribly surprising, delivers in terms of campfire tale creepiness. There isn't, of course, any rules to horror and people keep seeking that elusive formula of fright, but here's a quiet little piece that, with no evident artistic effort, presses just the right buttons. This is one obscurity that won't let you down when you find it.

I saw this movie for the first time on Kraft Mystery Theater in the summer of 1962.I was twelve years old and it gave me a real chill.I did not see it again until November of 2013. Over the years I had tried to find House of Mystery, but was unsuccessful until it was posted on YouTube. When, after half a century, I did view it again, I found to my delight, that I still was able to experience that delicious chill of fear, that I so love when i saw the climax.

I have a great love of ghost stories. The Uninvited, The Haunting, The Innocents, and on television such fare as the Thriller episode, The Hungry Glass" are all favorites of mine and House of Mystery ranks with them.

The pace is quick and has the same feel as one of those "B" shockers from the 1940's. It also has an effective and spooky musical score to add add to the viewers goosebumps. Jane Hylton's performance particularly stands out.

If, like me, you are a fan of classic English ghost stories then I think you will enjoy House of Mystery. It's not easy to locate but it is worth the search.

Not a bad little story. Well acted and GREAT creepy music. The story was well written and logical up to a point. The use of recursive flashbacks is pretty cool also.

But the story doesn't really resolve itself.

I think the reason people were scared by this is because of the scream and creepy stinger music at the end. But even the end is fairly predictable.

This could have been a great movie with a little more thought put into the ending. Another 20 minutes to answer more questions would have helped.

I'm sure this movie would scare the bejeesus out of younger kids who don't look too deeply into the story.

If you want a movie similar to this but vastly superior and scarier, go see 'Frailty'. It takes this idea to a much better conclusion.

Yet another UK short featuring a newlywed couple looking for a house, and finding one that seems far too cheap! In this case it's the idyllic 'Orchard Cottage'. As they're about to enter the property with the keys supplied by the estate agent, the door is opened from inside by a woman who explains that she comes by now and then to check on the place. She agrees to show them around, and when the couple wonder why such a lovely place is going for such a low price, the woman answers that it may be because of the ghost! She then tells them the story, and of the phenomena witnessed by the last couple who tried to stay there.

Directed by Vernon Sewell (The Ghosts of Berkeley Square, Ghost Ship, The Blood Beast Terror), this one again is more supernatural mystery than horror movie. Nanette Newman, Peter Dyneley (famously the voice of the "5...4...3...2...1" countdown at the start of the Thunderbirds TV show), and Colin Gordon star. Due to its running time (56 minutes), in the US this supporting feature was shown as an episode of the TV series Kraft Mystery Theatre. Generally more 'interesting' than 'chilling', this does have its moments and is worth a watch. 6/10.