The House in Thir13en Ghosts
The House is made of glass with Latin phrases etched onto every wall and floor. This will prevent the ghosts from travelling past them, keeping them contained in the basement. Once the family enters the house, it triggers the machine that moves the walls and opens doors. Releasing the ghosts on the unsuspecting family. The line ‘How do you lose a family in a glass house’ has never felt more satisfying in a movie.
When it comes to set design, you can’t look past how brilliant is. What should be a safe home, turns into a nightmare situation. Having them carry a wall with Latin on it to get past ghosts is a smart idea. Changing how people can defend themselves against ghosts. It is fitting that two of the villainous figures meet their demise thanks to the walls or doors. Leaving the family in a position where they never touch killing anyone. This could have easily been a factor in the story, but not used that way.
The Director
Steve Beck – Steve Beck has an interesting career. Working on the visual effects for ‘Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade’, ‘The Abyss’ and ‘The Hunt for Red October’. Before stepping away from that, focusing on directing. Following Thir13en Ghosts with ‘Ghost Ship’. The two movies clearly show his skills in effects and design. While other sides of both movies have their weakness, the ascetics are brilliant.
Returning to the original question. Why do I think this is a modern-day Cult Classic?
When it comes to cult classics, we need to see how big the audience the movie brings. The movie did well at the box office, making $68.5 Million off a surprisingly big budget of $42 Million. Ranking it 60th in the US Box Office for the year. Around ‘Zoolander’, ‘O Brother, Where Art Thou?’ and better than ‘Ali’.
When it comes to the visual look of the movie. The ghosts are memorable, most of which could even have their own spin-off movies. Let’s be honest, if it was released today, we would definitely have some spin-offs with these ghosts. The opening sequence shows of destructive the Juggernaut is. Certain ghosts have tragic backstories that could be explored. Sure, some are violent figures, but others have more to give. It would be like ‘The Conjuring Universe’ where the core stories are outstanding. While the spin-offs do the basics of horror without being offensive.
This is a movie that has plenty of horror fans out there. The actors who only appeared in this movie have been given a cult following because of the movie. The relentless pace at which the movie unfolds is a big draw. Everything about this movie knows where it stands in the horror world. It brings you in for an entertaining journey through a twisted mind.
2 replies on “Thir13en Ghosts – The Cult Classic Round Up”
Glad to see you are still blogging! Still love reading your posts.
I do believe this is a cult classic. I am not a horror fan at. all. But this one I saw in theaters (there’s a story there, but let’s just say I did not know we were going to watch a horror film that day). And I loved it! Because of everything you said. The cinematography, the story, the pace. When it was added to Netflix, I totally watched it again.
Thanks for stopping by still, I hope more people will enjoy the movie in the future