La casa stregata di Elvira

I just bought the DVD of Elvira's Haunted Hills today. Elvira's one of my favorite horror hosts (her and Svengoolie). We sure did wait a long time for this movie, and I'm glad to see it finally got made. Some of the sets in this film were really first-rate, and the hokey one-liners can still crack anyone up.

The DVD transfer was very good, both sound & video. There are lots of cool extras on the disc too, including "The Making Of Elvira's Haunted Hills" featurette; Interview with co-star Richard O'Brien and the Original theatrical trailer.

Elvira's Haunted Hills is a lot of fun - you'll enjoy this movie!

Elvira! What can one say? Well for starters, this movie is a wonderful tribute to one of the Kings of horror and suspense films – Vincent Price. I think he would have found this tribute to be hilarious and well representative of the genre he so magnificently sharpened through the 40-70's.

This take was filmed in Romania on an admittedly `low' budget. Of course, ultimately, this is one of the things that make this movie a classic. Elvira is at the top of her game in this movie.

Having finally gotten a gig in Paris, Elvira and her maid (unpaid for quite some time and, showing the attitude of someone who hasn't been…) are on the way to Paris to open the act when they get sidestepped in Romania. To any fans of Vincent Price films, the rest of the story is a combination of such thrillers as `Pit & the pendulum' & `House of Ushers' with a taste of our heroine Elvira tossed in.

Check out the Herculean translation job used with the Fabio-like `Stable-Stud'.

Fans of Mad TV will recognize Mary Scheer (Cabana Chat) as the the adulteress Lady Ema Hellsubus. The movie boasts a terrific - albeit short - musical number which tells the story of Elvira's past. It's a wonderful tribute to the Paris Can-Can.

Overall, this movie will be enjoyed by fans of Vincent Price or Elvira. You'll find yourself laughing, snickering and remembering those scary films of your childhood!

I always thought it was a shame that Elvira, Mistress of the Dark wasn't a success. It was a silly, dumb but very funny movie, one of those things like Scary Movie that everyone complains is tasteless and stupid but that I found wildly amusing.

So I always thought it was a pity that Casandra Peterson (Elvira, if you don't bother reading the credits) didn't have a hit so she could make another movie. But then I discovered that she did make another movie a few years later, Elvira's Haunted Hills, and alas, it is downright lame. Not unwatchable - Elvira is likable and some of the jokes are amusing - but this feels like a Saturday Night Live sketch stretched to an hour and a half. And not even a very good SNL skit. The acting is generally poor and the Roger Cormanesque parody script isn't funny enough to make up for being so trite and predictable.

I managed to catch a sneak-preview of this film, which is an entirely new feature, not a sequel, while it was still in post-production. For as wonderfully hysterical and charming as it appeared in its rough form, I can't wait to see the final result! A campy, lighthearted send up of the Vincent Price/Roger Corman/ Edgar Allan Poe/ Hammer horror movies from the 1960's, it follows true to both those films look and tone. Most of the film seems to take notice of THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM, but there are bits spoofing other films, plus plenty of original material as well. Most delightful, in addition to Elvira's newest dance number, is the budding romance between the Mistress of the Dark and a hunky care taker whose voiced-over words (deliberately) never match his mouth. A hoot. Additionally, The Divine Miss E lets the boob jokes run wild as expected and you can just SEE how much fun the cast had making the movie. Demand to see it in theaters! It's worth it!

Fans of Elvira shouldn't be disappointed. I used to watch Cassandra Peterson aka Elvira weekend afternoons in California hosting bad horror movies and loved her. The movie was good silly halloween humor. Many of the jokes didn't work, some did. Worth seeing just don't go in expecting the next great comedy. I enjoyed her first effort Elvira Mistress of the Dark better.