Terror at Red Wolf Inn

I saw Terror House as it's called when living in New Jersey in the early 1980's on television. For some reason television in New York and New Jersey as I saw back then was more liberal and showed much more gore and nudity unlike what I have experienced while living here in California. When I first saw this movie it was called Terror at Red Wolf Inn. Even though it was a horror movie laced with comedic touches I found it gross and unsettling at the time. There was a scene in the movie that no longer exists in present prints and I don't understand why it was cut as I realize the movie was re-rated from R to PG later. This was an innocent scenario where the girls were weighed in the kitchen on what appeared to be a meat scale by the owner of the resort to see how much weight each had gained from their gluttonous feasts at the hotel. Another scene now missing was when Margaret Avery's character 'Edwina' after being drugged is carried into the walk-in meat locker and placed on a butcher's table. That's as far as I go with that description. Arthur Space and Mary Jackson I had known before as veterans of movies and television. I now realize that the movie was much more violent than as shown now and would like to see the original uncensored or R-rated version. It is a forgotten 1970's camp classic and should be restored. Compared to today's movies it is much more subtle and disturbing.

Wow. Haha, this one rulez. The version I saw was called TERROR ON THE MENU and made me think twice about that Subway sandwich I had squirreled away for a late night snack ... Eww. This is a nice, subtle little Regional Horror/Comedy effort who's nuances may elude modern day audiences (re: the morons who liked stuff like CHAOS or SAW) but movie fans with a taste for the bizarre and a morbid sense of humor will be well served. Ladled in pun.

THE PLOT: A young circa 1972 era Earth Mother type college babe finds out on the last day of classes that she has been selected the "winner" of an all expenses paid getaway vacation to the Red Wolf Inn, a picturesque Bed & Breakfast on the coast run by an older couple who are the very definition of Ma & Pa Kettle. Some other young ladies are also staying as guests, and after a very elaborate dinner party one of them vanishes. Then another. She starts to get the idea that something is wrong, especially when the grandson of the family catches a shark at the beach one day and proceeds to beat the thing to death against a rock.

That's all I am going to reveal, except to heap praise on that first dinner party, one of the most outrageous cinematic eating experiences since the Eyeball Soup and Chilled Monkey Brains gags from Indiana Jones. The best part of it is the way that the characters chew their food. They don't just masticate, they linger over every mouthful with Pa Kettle stuffing his jowly cheeks with bite after bite of fresh rib tenderloin to the point where he starts to hyperventilate. He chews and chews and chews with an almost orgasmic pleasure that is not just disturbing, it is obscene. They eat and eat and eat until everyone is stuffed and exhausted from the effort ... And then it is time for a slice of that special Key Lime cake. Oh yeah.

This is one of those movies that you are either going to get or you won't. My favorite bit of dialog is when Ma Kettle brings the young guest a plate of sandwiches. She bites down, savoring the special flavor and asks, "What is this?" "Fillet, my dear. Fillet." Lead Linda Gillen is also a bit of subtle mastery, having a kind of quiet sexiness about her that is extremely infectious + kissable, and Ma & Pa Kettle are just the spittin' image of wholesome Americana. They are all about sit down dinners, Sunday afternoon drives, garden chores and old fashioned telephones. Everything in the movie is the perfect display of harmless tradition right down to their grandson and his cousin, the local sheriff. Some folks these days might not understand but if you bring your appetite and finish your plate, I am sure you'll feel right at home. It's like David Lynch crossed with that old TV series V.

The only problem I had with the film is the last 2 seconds after the hilarious closing credits: The filmmakers decided to try and have their cake and eat it too, so to speak, though any movie this perversely good natured gets a pass for not knowing when to quit. Pass the salt.

8/10

terror house aka;terror at red wolf inn is a very strange black comedy about a college girl(Linda gillen)who gets a letter telling her she won a trip to red wolf inn.so she packs her bags and embarks on a little vacation at a country inn run by an elderly couple with a secret.the print i seen was rated pg most likely edited.but its still a gruesome little chiller and paved the way for Texas chainsaw massacre and last house on the left.the title red wolf inn made me think it was a British film,but its American and from the looks low budget,not a bad little film.i call it a gruesome comedy horror,the actress Linda gillen looks a lot like Allison Hannigan(American pie,Buffy the vampire slayer)6 out of 10.

Don't take this movie too seriously. Its funny, yet creepy! Its one of the 1970's horror flicks that ranks right up there with "Children Shouldn't play with dead things" as well as "Don't look in the Basement". However, this one has definitely more humor to it. I recommend it during a Halloween party to be shown, or just sit back and enjoy it! Its nice to let loose and laugh a little!! I don't think its available at stores yet, or even online. If you taped it years ago from WOR, you are in luck! The plot is simply that Regina "wins" a trip to an inn. But she never entered the contest! A seemingly nice old couple are really luring in young women to serve them up at dinner time! I guarantee that you will get ill just from all the food that is being passed around at the table!! Other movies like this are "Corruption" (Peter Cushing), and "The Baby" (Anjanette Comer). I believe "The Baby" is available to purchase. Check out other movies with Peter Cushing, and Christopher Lee.

The Folks at Red Wolf Inn mixes cannibalism and comedy together surprisingly effectively. Regina (Linda Gillin) is the young student who win an holiday at the Red Wolf Inn, run by a nice old couple (Arthur Space and Mary Jackson). They have a somewhat retarded young grandson, about 18 years old, known as Baby John (John Neilson). It starts out wonderful for Regina, who really enjoys her stay and the wonderful food she is served. When the other young guests starts to disappear, Regina discovers that the nice old couple and Baby John is in fact carnivorous cannibals. She try to escape, but is caught and brought back. Baby John falls in love with the doomed girl and tries to help her escape, but they are caught.

"Baby John Smith," Grandma Evelyn angrily scolds him, "you've been a bad boy, get the belt !!" Baby John gets the belt and hands it over to Grandma Evelyn. Here we quickly understands that Baby John has been through this before... Without being told, as Grandma Evelyn stands with the belt in her hand, watching, Baby John pull down his trousers and pants. He bends over the front of the car they tried to escape in and put his hands at the far edge of the front of the car.

Grandma Evelyn stands beside him, lifts up the tail of his shirt that has been concealing his bare bottom. She raises her arm in the air, then : "SMACK", as she slap the belt down across his bare bottom. She gives him nine slaps. During the spanking scene, the camera shifts from Baby John's embarrassed face as he's looks at the startled Regina, standing in front of him.

After she has spanked him, she orders him to get in the house. He refuses, grabs Regina and runs away. The old couple run after them with their big mean dog, not intent on letting their dinner run away...! I have not given away the ending !! There are more, but this I can't tell...

For those of us that loved the low-budget cult movie horror circus of the early 1970s....this is black comedy in a manner that quite simply doesn't excist anymore...Thanks mainly to excellent playing by the entire cast and a fair amount of genuine wit, as opposed to gross humour, the film actually works as that most difficult of generic hybrids, the horror comedy. Young John Neilson as Baby John makes a disturbing mix of horror and comic relief, including his hilarious spanking scene. Notice that the final credits are presented in the form of a menu. It`s another forgotten low budget horror classic from the glorious days of the early 70s, the decade when they really knew how to make low budget horror classics.