House on Haunted Hill

1999 Horror

In this remake of William Castle's campy 1958 classic, an eccentric millionaire named Steven Price invites a diverse group of people to a reputedly haunted mansion that was formerly the site of an insane asylum. Steven offers his guests $1,000,000 each if they can spend the entire night at the old house without fleeing in terror. It sounds simple enough, but when those stories about ghosts haunting the mansion turn out to be true, the guests may no longer opt to stick around. In this version, Steven is played by Geoffrey Rush, and his guests include Jeffrey Combs, Taye Diggs, Peter Gallagher, Chris Kattan, and Bridgette Wilson; Famke Janssen plays Evelyn Price. Sadly, this remake does not feature the original's memorable special-effects gimmick, "Emergo," an inflatable plastic skeleton that rolled on wires through the theater during showings. more..

Director: William Malone

Starring: Geoffrey Rush, Taye Diggs,Famke Janssen, Peter Gallagher, Ali Larter

Reviews

  • Trash, but always just a little creepier than you expect.

    Owen Gleiberman - Entertainment Weekly

    26 April 2013

  • The effects never really get ahead of the characters or the script's layered personality.

    Tom Keogh - Film.com

    26 April 2013

  • The kind of horror movie that's not a bit scary and quite a bit gross.

    Mick LaSalle - The San Francisco Chronicle

    26 April 2013

  • For horror fans in a forgiving mood, it's an adequate fear fix.

    Maitland McDonagh - TV Guide

    26 April 2013

  • Fun for less than 30 of the 80-minute running time.

    Staff [Not Credited] - USA Today

    26 April 2013

Awards

  • Favorite Supporting Actor - Horror

    Blockbuster Entertainment Awards (2000)

  • The Dark and Stormy Night

    Golden Trailer Awards (2001)