Scream... and Die!

SCREAM...AND DIE! (or "The house that vanished" (1973))is the unknown piece of horror and sex that the master José Ramón Larraz did in England in the seventees. It's an erotic thriller with psychopatic murderer (Karl Lanchbury) perfomed by a beautiful model called Valerie (terrific Andrea Allan)involved in a haunting mistery and sadistic murders occurred in a isolated manor in the forest at midnights. Scream and die has an excellent and very particular quality in images and atmosferes. The movie is slow, yes, but this thing is normal in Larraz's movies: the story is very slow and predictable, but it's too sexy (the love scenes are really good and erotic) and brutal sometimes, and has the mark from the director of masterpieces as "Vampyres" and "Symptoms", both from 1974. The fog, tne night, the sounds of the killer walking with his black gloves following Valerie, the anguish in her face in her firsts shots, the slowly music give to the film a personal sight. The first murder seen by the hidden Valerie and husband as intimate witnesses and the escape from the manor are a classic composition of horror shots, wonderfully executed by the "voyeurisitic filmmaker" with a rare and genuine talent. It's a really brutal moment of sophisticated murder and "naïve" sex. Scream and die has the very personal "touch" of the catalanian director, all the constants that are in the most part of his baroque, sensual and horrific world (Emma puertas oscuras,La muerte incierta,Vampyres, Symptoms,Estigma,Whirpool, Deviation or Deadly manor) are present in here. The spiral of terror and tension grows very slowly -step by step- describing the world of this sexy model for fashion photographers in a continuated state of danger. Larraz creates a really personal style in a very traditional thriller that must be remembered by the tension,the british locations in Kent in winter,the quiet and dead moments of inusually fascination, the use of the photography, the artistic colors and the incredible dark shots of nights, the typical "english" fog, the horror moments and the clever sex that impressed me a lot in my adolescence. Scream and die has a kind of elegance in the horror genre that others horror thrillers hasn't. All the personal obsessions of José Larraz are here in a fine lesson of cinematography in his best period of his career, the british period. The fans of José Larraz need to know his firsts features, as "Whirpool" (1970) and "Deviation" (1971)-nobody has said anything more specific about these movies? (Please: more information and reviews in IMDB or other places,webs, etc.) and his last contribution tot the terror lately in "Deadly manor"(Savage lust, 1990)produced by his old british friend Brian Smedley-Aston. When the fans of José Ramón Larraz, Brian Smedley-Aston (editor of "Performance" ,etc.), his actresses and his horrific world will have a web or a personal page about the director? Where are the fans of this spanish/british filmmaker?. Goodbye!

Spanish director José Ramón Larraz made a couple of excellent UK-based chillers with Symptoms and Vampyres, this psychological horror film was another such film from this director but it is definitely less impressive. Its about a woman who witnesses a murder in a house and then forgets where the house is - how absent-minded! The killer then starts stalking her and it all goes a bit pear-shaped. This is both run-of-the-mill and completely improbable. One particular memorable sequence has the protagonist tell her friends about witnessing the violent murder and the fact that the killer is now after her, they deal with it like the whole situation is a bit of a thundering nuisance but basically relatively trivial. Thanks pals.

THE HOUSE THAT VANISHED is pretty good atmospheric psychological thriller. I had very little hope for it when I started watching this Larraz film. To make matters worse, the video transfer is very dark, grainy and the sound had some weird looping technical glitch. I quickly thought then that the movie flatlined from the get go, certainly during the scene with the woman undressing in front of the killer, which was a tad ridiculous. But when the movie ended, to my surprise, I actually enjoyed it. The film is not the greatest ever made and there are a lot of faults to it (pacing is one of them) but the atmosphere is very good and the story is more about the intertwining aspects of location and identity than horror or violence. THE HOUSE THAT VANISHED reminded me a lot of Mario Bava's HATCHET FOR THE HONEYMOON. It's like a twisted soap opera. This film deserves a better transfer, on video or DVD, than the one that's for sale on eBay (from Media), which I bought for 50 cents!!!

"The House that Vanished" (alternately known as "Scream... and Die!" follows a London fashion model Valerie Jennings who accompanies her boyfriend to an abandoned house in the middle of the woods for reasons unknown to her; he claims there is something he needs to find there. The two end up witnessing a murder, and while Valerie manages to escape, her boyfriend-and the house-seem to vanish.

Directed by Jose Ramon Larraz, who directed the fantastically atmospheric "Symptoms" directly after this, "The House that Vanished" is an underrated and overlooked giallo-inspired horror effort that exudes atmosphere extremely well. The well-known American title of the film, "The House that Vanished," is weirdly alluring, and part of what drew me into obtaining the film in the first place. Sounds fascinating, right? It is, at least for the majority. The first forty minutes or so of the film truly leave the viewer itching for what is going to happen next, and the apparent disappearance of the house itself creates an ample mystery to be solved.

When the film wraps itself into a conclusion in the last act, things do feel somewhat anticlimactic; the surprise somewhat falls apart as the inevitable conclusion comes into sight, but that aside, I still found this film remarkably entertaining and well-made. The dimly-lit interiors of the titular house are ominous and cold, contrasting well with Valerie's' proper London flat. The cinematography is also effective, and the shots of the killer, appearing only as hands, feet, or weapon, are reminiscent of many a giallo. It's clear Larraz took his cues from the Italian cinema of the time.

All in all, "The House that Vanished" is an effective and atmospheric effort, enhanced greatly by its moody visuals and a relatively engaging mystery at its core. Though not quite as chilling as "Symptoms," it is one of Larraz's better films, and also unfortunately one of his lesser-known. 7/10.

Valerie and her boyfriend Terry witness a murder in an old abandoned house. They had heard the sound of a car arriving and they hid themselves. A couple had come in. They could only see the girl because He remained always in the shadow. She undressed herself and sat on his lap. Suddenly a switchblade flashes out. She's stabbed to death.

Valerie in her panic rushes blindly out of the house. Outside she waits for Terry. He doesn't come. Then she hears footsteps. Again she runs and runs.... Somehow she manages to get home in the morning.

In London Valerie goes back to her routine. She tries to contact Terry, be he's disappeared from sight. And worst of all, when Valerie looks out of her window she sees Terry's car parked in front of her house. The killer knows who she is and where she lives! When Valerie speaks with her friends about it, they advise her to not contact the police. After all Terry is a shady dealer, and she could get involved in a very nasty business. But what happened to Terry? Is he still alive?

The killer is stalking her, and he will strike again...

By the description, you could think that "Scream and Die" is a very suspenseful thriller. But you would be wrong.

"Scream and Die" (the title is misleading) should be seen by those that like a weird atmosphere: the thick fog that envelops the house when Terry and Valerie arrive there, Valerie's friends and neighbors, the early 70s mood, the subtle and effective soundtrack, and the bizarre! Most viewers will guess from the beginning who the killer is. But that's not really important. I enjoy "Scream and Die" because it's atmospheric and feels natural (characters and environment), but it is at the same time dreamy, and sometimes surreal. The beautiful and delicate Andrea Allan is Valerie. She is a joy to behold!

If you like the films of Larraz this is another one to add to your collection