Le Sous-sol de la peur

I really think people who describe this as a comedy or even a horror comedy are missing the point - it's a classic fairy/folk tale, right down to the theme of the kid having to earn manhood and a "real name" by doing a heroic deed. Wicked step-parents, hidden treasure (gold coins, even!), creepy house with secret passages and monsters in the basement, captive maiden to be rescued, innocent villagers held in slavery by evil (land)lords - it's all there! I know this could be said of a lot of fantasy/horror films, but this one seems to be more clearly derived than most. Loved it!

I found The People Under The Stairs very entertaining as it combines comedy with suspense. The Mum and Dad character were really creepy but provided the most laughs in the movie which is kind of odd in a way. The kid (who is kind of annoying) is similar to Macauley Culkin's character in Home Alone and the Ma and Pa characters are similar to the burglars from Home Alone too but instead of the bad guys invading the good guys house the good guys are invading the bad guys house. The house is cool as heck with loads of secret passages and gizmos, it's a child's dream play house! It has thrills, suspense, laughs and gore! There is not much bad to say against it but don't go in to this thinking it's a horror movie because it isn't. A darned good flick! 9/10

Many people dislike this movie but it's good enough for watching, if maybe not several times then at least once. "Don't damage the face", says Mother and leaves Father to punish Alice for being a bad girl. That's it, I'm hooked to the screen. First time I saw this movie I missed the beginning but it works well without it. Actually you can skip the background story with the financial problems and society issues and stick to the horror - and it's comical side. I specially liked the kid called Roach, who had his tongue cut out for bad words. Alice was also great, a shy little girl that tries to be nice for Mommy and not soil her pretty dress, though she feeds the basement people and guides Fool around when the time comes. When you watch a doll being pulled away from you on a string, you must follow it... Find a candle in the darkness. You know you must get out but the door is locked. The only way out is upwards.

There is a lot of nice visual stuff like the old bathroom or running inside the walls and the light drifting in from bullet holes. Mother and Father live in a fantasy where children are supposed to be pretty and behave. Now a few decades ago that was reality, but they are pulling it over the edge by mutilating their children and locking them in the basement if they're naughty. I recall that the kids weren't really theirs but kidnapped from around the area. Many people writing down the plot have misunderstood it somehow. It is quite poor but in this case it's not supposed to be a main attraction. I bet the writer came up with the idea of a sick mother and burglary in order to get money for medical treatment only after inventing the main idea about the house and the brother and sister living together as a couple, herding a bunch of insane children. Well they must have some reason to get Fool into the house, so why not...

The People Under the Stairs (1991)

*** (out of 4)

Stuck in the ghetto and about to be evicted while his mother is needing surgery for a cancer, a young kid known as Fool (Brandon Adams) agrees to help a man break into the landlord's house because there's rumors that it is full of gold. The two make it inside the house but they run into a bizarre couple (Everett McGill, Wendy Robie) as well as many other things living in the basement.

By the time 1991 rolled around the horror genre was pretty much dead but there were a few interesting movies that managed to get released, although the box office numbers still weren't very good. Wes Craven's THE PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS is a film with many, many flaws but at the same time it's certainly an original film that tries to do something more than just shock the viewer with gore effects. The film manages to mix in a political statement with the horror and there's even some humor thrown in as well.

I think the best thing going for the movie is the lead character and the actor. The situation is quite simple as a poor kid must resort to a crime so that his family might have a better future. We already want to see the kid succeed at getting the money but once we see how derange the two living inside the house are we just want to see him win even more. Adams gives an extremely good performance for someone his age and it's certainly a lot better than you typically see in a film like this. A.J. Langer is also extremely good in her role as a girl trapped inside the house. McGill has always been fun to watch and he and Robie have a great chemistry together. Even Ving Rhames is good in his part.

Craven certainly knows how to milk a scene for drama and he perfectly knows how to set up various scenes that are aimed to build tension. The atmosphere he creates is certainly another major plus as is the terrific cinematography and the music score. However, there are some flaws including the fact that the movie runs at least ten minutes too long. Some of the scenes go on a bit too long and I think it was a mistake leaving the house for a brief period of time towards the end.

Still, THE PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS is a rather original movie and while it didn't have the same impact as something like A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET, it's still an interesting movie that's worth watching.

"The People Under the Stairs" is usually listed as a horror movie, but I view it more as a social commentary. Basically, it shows how the landlords, far from the wholesome image that they project, are two of the vilest individuals imaginable. I've liked every Wes Craven movie that I've seen, and "TPUTS" is no exception. I think that part of the thing is that I saw it around the same time that I saw Woody Allen's repulsive "Everyone Says I Love You", which constituted excessive focus on neurotic rich New Yorkers. Wes Craven's movie presents a very negative image of rich people. Mom (Wendy Robie) and Dad (Everett McGill) make Ebenezer Scrooge look like Mother Teresa. Not even the landlady in "Gremlins" was as nasty as these two.

All in all, this is a horror movie in the sense that it's horrific not only what the landlords are doing, but what those in power have degenerated into overall. Worth seeing.

Also starring Brandon Adams, A.J. Langer, Ving Rhames, Bill Cobbs, Kelly Jo Minter, Sean Whalen and Jeremy Roberts.