Don't Go In the House (1979)

"Come inside and meet my mother." - Donny

If a deeply disturbed man invites you into his house, don't go in the house!
Starring: Dan Grimaldi, Robert Osth, Johanna Brushay, Susan Smith

Link to IMDB

Donny Kohler is a man obsessed with fire. When he was a child, his mother abused him by burning his arms every time he did something bad, and now he carries with him a profound fear and love for flames.
He still lives with mother, but when she dies in her sleep he denies the reality of it, and keeps her corpse in the house so he can talk to her. Although Donny is grief stricken, he also realizes he is now free from his mother's control.
After literally jumping on the furniture for the first time in his life, Donny's next business is to build a metal fireproof room where he can play with his flamethrower.
Donny is quite disturbed but he comes across as a shy and unassuming guy, so he has no problems luring a woman into the house. The poor lady becomes Donny's first victim, as he chains her up in the fire room and burns her alive!


Holy shit, the burning is quite disturbing, as Donny calmly watches all her "evilness" melt away. He descends deeper into madness, as he continues to kill more women and keeps their charred corpses in the living room. When he begins hallucinating about his mother and his victims coming to life to punish him, he realizes that maybe he's gone too far.
In hopes of finding normalcy, Donny tries to reconnect with his friends and his love for disco, but it's only a matter of time before Donny is going to explode.

"I was burned, just like in Hell." - Donny

Don't go to the disco !

Instead of a slasher film the story is a gritty view into Donny's breakdown, and for the most part it works well. Much of that credit goes to Grimaldi's great performance, because he really carries the entire film.
We understand that Donny is also a victim, but it fails to create enough suspense and the only conflict in the plot is his inner turmoil. The music and atmosphere are bleak and moody, fitting perfectly with the fact that we're experiencing everything from Donny's perspective.
Overall, this is a memorable grindhouse thriller, but isn't quite exceptional enough to be a classic.

Be sure not to miss:
- The fun of yelling, "Don't go in the house!" every time someone goes into Donny's house.
- Dan Grimaldi later played Patsy Parisi on The Sopranos.

Internet review:
"A true documentary about every kid who watched Beavis and Butthead." - Brakywaki

Should I watch it?
It's good, but not essential.

Where can I find it?
Here on YouTube.

Don't go in the House gets...