If
I have learned anything from watching slasher movies it is that pranks never
ever go right! Your shenanigans might just come back to bite you and possibly
even have a body account. The House on Sorority Row is yet another of those
life lessons that I think viewers should take to heart. Now that I’m done being
silly let’s talk about the movie.
Things
kick off in the past as we see a woman giving birth. It is a difficult delivery
and there is something wrong with the baby that is only hinted at with some
dialogue. Then things fast forward twenty or so years in the future. The
graduating seniors of a sorority decide to stay late for one last party before
heading off to their adult lives. This is frowned upon by their severe
housemother, Mrs. Slater, who wants them out of the house. This leads to some
conflict that results in a shredded water bet and a revenge prank involving a
gun and some blanks.
You
can probably figure out that the girl’s revenge on Mrs. Slater goes awry and
she is accidentally shot and killed. Instead of owning up to it… this is a
slasher movie… they weigh her body down and toss it in the scummy pool outback
and continue with the party that night! That is a mistake as someone decides to
start picking the girls and at least one party guest off. But who could it be?
Is it Mrs. Slater? Could she have lived? Does it have to do with the opening
scene? I’ll never tell so I guess you will just have to watch the movie to find
out or go look for spoilers on the web.
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| This won't end well! |
Don’t
do the latter as this is a cool flick that deserves to be seen. The story has
all the hallmarks of the slasher subgenre with the prank, mysterious killer,
insanely irresponsible characters, and plenty of suspects to keep the audience
guessing. The House on Sorority Row is pretty early on in the first wave of
these movies so while the formula had been established it hadn’t been run into
the ground yet. This one also stands out because they really do keep you
guessing until the end as to who the killer is. When you do find out it is a
bit of a surprise, but one that is both satisfying and plausible. The script
has a lot of subtle hints as to what is going on that you won’t notice the
first time thru but will catch on repeated viewings. I’ve watched this flick
many times and it holds up well. To me that is the sign that it is a great
script and story.
Speaking
of the formula I need to note that fans looking for some good kills should be
satisfied. I mean this isn’t a Friday the 13th or The Burning
gorefest but there are some good gags. We get a cane to the throat, a
clawhammer kill, a bashed in forehead, a mangled hand, and some butcher knife
mayhem. Total kills add up to a respectable nine, with most happening onscreen.
For an early eighties flick not involving Savini I was satisfied with what I
got.
A
few other observations. We get the required nudity if that sort of thing is
important to you. I also noticed some scenes and setup that reminded me a bit
of Black Christmas, but I don’t feel like they were lifting anything so that
was fine. It is just a nice nod to what came before and is very creepy. There
is also a bitching van with a bad ass interior, which as a child of the
seventies I very much appreciated.
Overall,
I’d say that while not a classic The House on Sorority Row is a solid flick
that doesn’t get talked about enough. Track yourself down a copy and check it
out. I’d also love to hear what you think about it.
© Copyright 2020
John Shatzer
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