Review of House of Wax

House of Wax (1953)
7/10
Good 50's Horror Movie
19 October 2017
Warning: Spoilers
House of Wax is a 1953 horror movie directed by Andre De Toth and starring Vincent Price. The film's strength was in the story and the performance by Vincent Price (Professor Henry Jarrod). It is a unique and unsettling story about the owner of a wax museum that burns down and decides to commit murder as a way of rebuilding a new wax museum. Even though the movie debuted over half a century ago, there were some genuinely unnerving moments in the twisted nature of Vincent Price's character and the moments where fear of the unknown is employed.

House of Wax is a horror movie that came before the "slasher" films and does not rely of the shock of gore or violence but is more a psychological thriller. The moments where Henry is tracking down his victim definitely parallel Freddy with Nightmare on Elm Street, who also has a face scarred by burns. It was good, but not as good as other people within the same genre and decade (Hitchcock).
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