I love being startled by something unexpected in a horror movie. It lets me know that I need to be kept on my toes and be ready for anything. Kind of like when young Regan in The Exorcist was inappropriately banging herself with a crucifix. Definitely a “Did that just really happen?” kind of moment. In 2009, director Ti West gave us one of those moments in his fantastic slow-burn horror movie, The House Of The Devil.
I love this film, but it’s one that you have to be patient with. And if you have the patience, you’ll be rewarded with scenes like the one where Megan (Greta Gerwig) is confronted by Victor Ulman (A.J. Bowen) as she tries to enjoy a cigarette while sitting in her car. It will make you think of ducking if someone ever stops you and asks “Are you not the babysitter?”
Now there have been a lot of ‘gunshot to the head’ death scenes in horror movies over the years, but that one just might be my favorite. Obviously you know that something is probably going to happen to Megan, but it’s the sheer suddenness of it all that puts this headshot on the top of the list for me and made me say “Holy shit!“. Poor Megan. She probably wishes she had stuck around and ate some more pizza instead of leaving and getting her nicotine fix. They sure do like pizza in this movie by the way.
