"The House" has quite an intriguing (and brave) plot. It also contains a fairly accurate reconstruction of a certain period in history, complete with in-built warning : beware the super-patriots who fight for Truth, Justice and The American Way by smearing, blackmailing and incarcerating anything that moves. Another pertinent warning : beware those who defend a society by flouting its laws and betraying its core values.
Viewed as a thriller, "The House" plays fair with the viewer. Clues are handed out honestly, developments are logical and the ending is nicely apt, in a poetical justice sort of way.
Sadly the execution is not entirely up to the challenge. For some reason or another the movie rarely evokes a sense of breathless suspense, even when characters rush down a fire escape in order to flee an imminent explosion. Directors such as, say, a Polanski or a Hitchcock can make the viewer quake in his seat by showing him a ferry leaving a port or a class of schoolchildren playing in a yard ; here you've got pretty much the opposite quality. It's a pity.
Viewed as a thriller, "The House" plays fair with the viewer. Clues are handed out honestly, developments are logical and the ending is nicely apt, in a poetical justice sort of way.
Sadly the execution is not entirely up to the challenge. For some reason or another the movie rarely evokes a sense of breathless suspense, even when characters rush down a fire escape in order to flee an imminent explosion. Directors such as, say, a Polanski or a Hitchcock can make the viewer quake in his seat by showing him a ferry leaving a port or a class of schoolchildren playing in a yard ; here you've got pretty much the opposite quality. It's a pity.