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Too much of everything

The Age of Commercialism

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

How much you enjoy this film depends on how much you like Frankie Howerd, the silly comedian famous for his roles in UP POMPEII and the CARRY ON series. If you hate him, then deduct a star from the rating. If you're a great fan of his, then add on a star. Although most of the film largely hinges around Howerd's character, there is also much more to savour. The plot is essentially that of a haunted house mystery, and digs up all the old clichés of moving statues of armour and the like. The bickering family, murderous over a will, is also an old chestnut and it's safe to say that there aren't many chills (apart from the mad old woman at the end taking her veil off) or surprises to be had when watching this contrived film.However the costumes and scenery, including the authentic Victorian house, are very nice to look at, and there is also a good ensemble cast, the acting honours going to Hugh Burden as Reginald, whose trademark catchphrase "swine" manages to be repeatedly funny, and Ray Milland as a seemingly polite but inherently psychotic host. With a good, spooky score to keep things moving along, a lively screenplay by Terry Nation (DR WHO) and above-average direction by Peter Sykes (TO THE DEVIL A DAUGHTER), THE HOUSE IN NIGHTMARE PARK is an atmospheric piece which sufficiently retains the viewer's interest to the very end. However, comedy also plays a main part in the film, and while being variable at times (including some sniggering humour about breasts), it's rather good, but I may be biased in saying this.There are two scenes which stand out in sheer hilarity terms, the first being the dinner table scene where Howerd is unable to get any breakfast, and the second being the 'dance of the dolls', where three respected actors dress up in white makeup and pretend to be mannequins. It's certainly something you won't see anywhere else. Frankie Howerd is immensely likable in the central role, but whether you find his jokes funny or not, well that's up to you. Let's just say they're of the usual variety and he essentially plays himself. I found that while there weren't many laugh-out-loud moments there were certainly lots of smiling, knowing humour, including a blatant reference to PSYCHO. THE HOUSE IN NIGHTMARE PARK, hampered by a clichéd, average plot, nevertheless turns out to be a fairly enjoyable hour and a half of thrills and chills.

Well...despite the fact that many people find this film funny, I really can't say it did much at all for me. I found The House in Nightmare Park to be derivative, unimaginative and really rather boring - Frankie Howerd in the lead role didn't do much for me either. Horror films (and horror comedies) about a family/bunch of people in an old house always seem to revolve around a hidden fortune, and this film is no different, which is a shame. The film is directed by Peter Sykes, who also directed two of the lesser Hammer films in To The Devil a Daughter and Demons of the Mind, and while this film is actually slightly better than those two; it didn't do anything to improve my opinion of the man at the helm. The plot focuses on Foster Twelvetrees, an actor who is hired by the mysterious and sinister Henderson family to perform at the house. It soon transpires that somewhere on the property is buried treasure, and naturally everyone in the house wants to find it - and they're happy to do that, even if it does mean bumping off the others in the process.The film is meant to be a horror comedy, although it doesn't provide a balance between the two - rather, it's a comedy with some atmosphere and a creaky old house thrown in. Frankie Howerd is a popular comedian for a reason, but all the same; his style of humour doesn't appeal to me much. There's nothing particularly wrong with his performance in this film; he leads it well and keeps things mostly interesting. There aren't a great deal of standout moments in the film and a lot of the jokes aren't funny. The plot moves well, but it's always obvious where it's going, especially for me since I've seen this sort of thing many times before. Ray Milland pops up in a supporting role and gives the film a bit of much needed class. The locations aren't bad and the country house itself is a foreboding presence. The ending doesn't come as much of a surprise, although the build up to it is the best part of the film. The House in Nightmare Park has its fans, but as I've made quite clear - I'm not one of them!

I have seen this film, or movie if you prefer, on a couple of occasions and found it very entertaining.Critics of the film have over the years said it would have been so much better with Bob Hope in the lead role, but this is surely the kind of role that Hope, albeit very effectively, played to excess through his career? so its nice to see another actor have a stab at a 'Hope-esque' role.Howerd breezes through the film delivering his lines with a 'poker' face, as only he could, and seems to be rather enjoying the experience. I would say that this is one of his more engaging performances.Some scenes are superbly weird, especially the family's 'living marionette' act, at the end of which Howerd asks in his memorable diction "I wonder what they do for an encore?" Watching this film is a very passable way of spending a couple of hours!

Frankie Howerd was enjoying something of a career renaissance in the early '70's, thanks to 'Up Pompeii!', going on to star in three feature length spin-offs, the last of which was 'Up The Front!' in 1973. Also that year he starred in this curio, a delightfully old fashioned comedy thriller in the mold of 'The Cat And The Canary'.Howerd plays 'Foster Twelvetrees', a ham Shakespearian actor invited to give a performance at the house of the sinister Henderson family. Somewhere on the premises is buried treasure, and someone is determined to find it - even if it means committing murder.As you'd expect in a Frankie Howerd movie, the saucy jokes come thick and fast. But the reason why I've given this unusual British film a ten out of ten rating is because it expertly mixes comedy with terror. The shot of a defaced poster of Twelvetrees just before the opening credits is accompanied by a blood-curdling scream - perfectly setting the tone for what follows. The scene in the snake house, the live puppet show, and Twelvetrees almost being butchered with a meat cleaver by an insane old woman are unusually strong by comedy standards. Credit for this must not only go to the underrated director Peter Sykes, but writers Clive Exton and Terry Nation. The latter had written for Tony Hancock a decade earlier, as well as creating the Daleks for 'Dr.Who' so he knew all about scaring audiences.The presence of Ray Milland adds class to the film and marks it out from the other British comedies around at the time. My favourite supporting character, though, is played by Hugh Burden, muttering 'swine!' under his breath each time he claps eyes on Twelvetrees. 'Park' came out on Network D.V.D. some time ago, and I would unhesitatingly recommend it to people even if they weren't fans of Mr.Howerd.