The People Under The Stairs
Added 11/22/2009
i enjoyed wes Cravens people under the stairs very unusual family relationship indeed brother & sister keeping her doughter aj langer hidden from the out side world along with other forgotten people in a old freaky house former funeral home selling cheap coffins at huge pricess to the poor they owned almost every house in the neighbourhood . ving rhymes plays his role very well anyone who likes a bit of mild horror though this would fall under thriller action this film made in the 90s is great viewing anyone looking to own a dvd copy highly recommended ******
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Every neighborhood has a house that all the kids avoid...
Added 5/28/2009
Before Wes Craven started making things like Scream, he made a very creative and bizarre little movie in the early 90's entitled The People Under the Stairs.
The story centers around a young boy from the ghetto named Fool, who is willing to do anything to keep his apartment building from getting condemned. This means rounding up enough cash to pay the rent, and his older friend Leroy has devised a perfect scheme to get it: Rob the evil white landlords. Unfortunately Fool and Leroy didn't anticipate the fact that the landlords are an utterly insane brother and sister couple that, in an attempt to have the perfect child, have built up an entire collection of kidnapped children in their basemant. Once Fool finds himself trapped in the impenetrable fortress the landlords call home, he struggles to escape with his life, the money, and to liberate the people under the stairs.
Judging from the title your first instinct might be that the people under the stairs are the main antagonists, when in reality they are the victims of the psychotic "Mommy" and "Daddy". When it's boiled down The People Under the Stairs is a very cool story about sticking it to the rich and greedy in the name of the poor that is propelled by a good balance of comedy and horror throughout. The over-the-top performances also assist in making this a movie experience you won't be forgetting anytime soon.
The People Under the Stairs is Wes Craven at the top of his game, not one to be missed for horror fanatics.
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Awesome movie
Added 4/19/2009
I have seen plenty of horror movies in my time, but this is one of the few that truly stands out in my memory, due to the plotline, characters, and acting. The story is weird but in a twisted way believable, as if people like this might exist in such this world, but some of the things (like riding the mattress into the pond and what happened to the pond afterwards) are hilarious. This movie has a sort of dark humor but at the same time is serious. Overall a very enjoyable and memorable movie.
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The People Under the Stairs Review from The Massie Twins
Added 11/1/2008
Wes Craven's The People Under the Stairs presents a unique idea for a horror film, but isn't quite able to pull it off. Phenomenal acting by the damnable ghetto owners and an unlikely 13-year-old hero add to the singularity, but the repetitious hunting through the walls of the prison-like house of horrors and the lack of victims makes the film more of an adventure than nail-biting horror. It's a fun little film, but not nearly ambitious enough to rank amongst the best of Craven's works.
13-year-old Poindexter (Brandon Adams), nicknamed "Fool" by his friends, is looking for an uncomplicated way to help his family pay for rent and his mother's operation. When older accomplice Leroy (Ving Rhames) and his buddy Spenser hatch a plan to rob the house of the seldom seen family that owns the entire ghetto area where they all reside, Fool is in for more than he bargained.
Dressed in electrician's garb, Spenser manages to con his way into the mysterious home of "Mom" and "Dad" to look around. But when he doesn't come back, Leroy and Fool break in - only to discover that the sadistic parents have stored away dozens of zombie-like tortured captives in their enormous basement. Battling Prince, the ravenous guard dog, the shotgun-toting Dad and the knife-wielding Mom proves to be the horror of a lifetime as Fool and a young prisoner girl named Alice struggle to escape the fortress of fright.
The highlights of the film are Everett McGill and Wendy Robie who embody the terrifying Mom and Dad with such over-the-top depravity that audiences can't help but laugh and shiver. Dad parades around in bondage gear yelling up a storm, claims to serve a greater good, and allows little Alice to live provided she stays mute and blind to the atrocities around her. In his attempt to nab the perfect boy child, he keeps the lobotomized rejects locked away in the basement - but one has escaped, and now clambers through the crumbling walls of the house, aiding Fool and Alice in their plight. Mom is equally crazy, intent on killing anyone who sets foot in the house, and making sure the doorknobs are electrified, metal shutters are sealed, windows are barred and deadly booby-traps are in place.
The People Under the Stairs is a combination of a grand escape adventure and a slasher flick; there are moments of bloody violence, but ultimately Craven has chosen to stick with suspense and mystery to keep the viewer glued to the edge of the seat. Although much of the film is too exaggerated and over-the-top to be scary, the suspense garnered from helpless children trying to elude armed adults is undeniably effective (think of Misery, in which James Caan is reduced to a defenseless nature). It may not stand out as the best of Wes Craven's body of horror films, but it's grown on audiences over the years - enough to coerce Hollywood into making a sequel, tentatively set for 2010.
- Mike Massie
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Great Movie
Added 10/30/2008
This was a great movie that brought back old memories. I just wish this came in Full Screen. The widescreen format kinda takes away from the flick but it is a great add to any movie collection.
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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The People Under The Stairs
Added 11/22/2009
i enjoyed wes Cravens people under the stairs very unusual family relationship indeed brother & sister keeping her doughter aj langer hidden from the out side world along with other forgotten people in a old freaky house former funeral home selling cheap coffins at huge pricess to the poor they owned almost every house in the neighbourhood . ving rhymes plays his role very well anyone who likes a bit of mild horror though this would fall under thriller action this film made in the 90s is great viewing anyone looking to own a dvd copy highly recommended ******
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Every neighborhood has a house that all the kids avoid...
Added 5/28/2009
Before Wes Craven started making things like Scream, he made a very creative and bizarre little movie in the early 90's entitled The People Under the Stairs.
The story centers around a young boy from the ghetto named Fool, who is willing to do anything to keep his apartment building from getting condemned. This means rounding up enough cash to pay the rent, and his older friend Leroy has devised a perfect scheme to get it: Rob the evil white landlords. Unfortunately Fool and Leroy didn't anticipate the fact that the landlords are an utterly insane brother and sister couple that, in an attempt to have the perfect child, have built up an entire collection of kidnapped children in their basemant. Once Fool finds himself trapped in the impenetrable fortress the landlords call home, he struggles to escape with his life, the money, and to liberate the people under the stairs.
Judging from the title your first instinct might be that the people under the stairs are the main antagonists, when in reality they are the victims of the psychotic "Mommy" and "Daddy". When it's boiled down The People Under the Stairs is a very cool story about sticking it to the rich and greedy in the name of the poor that is propelled by a good balance of comedy and horror throughout. The over-the-top performances also assist in making this a movie experience you won't be forgetting anytime soon.
The People Under the Stairs is Wes Craven at the top of his game, not one to be missed for horror fanatics.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Awesome movie
Added 4/19/2009
I have seen plenty of horror movies in my time, but this is one of the few that truly stands out in my memory, due to the plotline, characters, and acting. The story is weird but in a twisted way believable, as if people like this might exist in such this world, but some of the things (like riding the mattress into the pond and what happened to the pond afterwards) are hilarious. This movie has a sort of dark humor but at the same time is serious. Overall a very enjoyable and memorable movie.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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