BEYOND THE DOOR II
Wheeeeee! Oedipal tension!
Also known as Shock. Also also known as Suspense. Isn't that interesting? It's, like, art, man. And that's just the title!
Rarely has a good movie stumbled out of the starting block so badly. Not only are we treated to some really awful music after a brief tour of a basement, but the first person we see is a closeup of this really ugly-ass kid, who actually looks into the camera and says in his annoying, dubbed voice, "Marco! That's my name!"
"Uh-huh..." I'm mumbling.
But things got better though - Mario Bava has yet to disappoint me, and despite the serious Lamberto taint that this film suffers (I believe that Lamberto, while credited with having co-wrote the script and served as director's assistant, covertly handled most of the directing duties), he mostly comes through in style. I guess even Lamberto can't screw it up when a guy like Mario Bava's looking over his shoulder.
For that matter, I'd say that the kid is the only major hinderance to this being a really, really good film. I mean, he's just so, so terrible! The kind of kid you just want to whack. And I don't mean smack across the head with a hammer, I mean actually get the mafia to put out a contract on him. He's that annoying.
Even though the kid doesn't improve, the music does, and without getting into plot points or rehashing what can be read on the back of the box (or in any review for the film), the plot holds a number of surprises.
Without giving too much away, suffice it to say that this kid starts acting a little strangely, manifesting some really inappopriate behaviors like, oh, mounting his mom, stealing his mom's ridiculous-looking underwear, spying on his mom in the shower...you know, the kind of shit you always see on Home Improvement.
Nice atmosphere, some really creepy moments and some really icky situations make this a winner overall. All they needed was a different kid...any different kid...Mary Kate or Ashley Olsen, even! Yes, he's that bad! Lemme put it this way - he's worse than the kid in House By The Cemetery. Luckily, this one comes through better overall.