The House on Sorority Row 1983

 This 1983 slasher flick was directed and written by Mark Rosman who now oddly enough, works for Disney writing the Lizzie McGuire TV show and writing A Cinderella Story which is a more modern day retelling of the classic fairy tale.  We have another film with Richard Band providing the music which means it is filled with familiar riffs even though it's definitely not plagiarized.  Nope not a bit.  Ah, anyway, where was I?  Yes, the movie itself, takes place in a sorority house where a practical joke goes wrong and things get worse after that.  It contains many scantily clad college girls and one miserable house mother, Mrs. Slater who is played by Lois Kelso Hunt.  The voice of Mrs. Slater is dubbed, however, as the producers didn't think Hunt had a sinister enough voice. 

  

The film stars Kathryn McNeil as Katherine Rose who is the moral compass of the group.  Let me tell you, there are a few times when she flubs her lines and messes up a word corrects herself and the scene plays on.  As Ricky, The Horror Homie (yes he was on hand for this screening) she could have used a few second takes that they just weren't gonna give her.  Eileen Davidson plays Vicki, the head "mean girl" who comes up with the prank that begins the body count.  Robin Meloy, Harley Kozak, Jodi Draigie, and Ellen Dorsher play the rest of the doomed sorority sisters.  McNeil and Davidson who were actresses on As The World Turns and The Young and the Restless respectively, cashed in on their soaps notoriety to make this film which may be one of the reasons it was made for under $500,000 and earned over 10 million dollars domestically.  The film is also loaded with product placement.  There is a big bucket of Kentucky Fried chicken and the sorority house comes complete with a Coke machine right in the kitchen.  Not that it takes away from the film just a stray observation.

This one has a few flaws mainly, it's boring.  Also it's not plotted out very well, as we never get a good look at the killer until the next to last scene and he's wearing a mask so why exactly couldn't we see him earlier?  I already mentioned the flubs in the lines by McNeil who along with Davidson do a decent enough job but it's the material they are given to work with that screws them up.  Now there is a bright spot and that is the house band they have to perform at the party they are throwing at the sorority house.  The band is 4 Out Of 5 Doctors and they are a really cheesy 80's power pop band (at least that's what they are labeled as but I would call them a low budget basement punk pop band) that perform a handful of songs throughout the movie and believe me when I tell you they are some of the better parts of the movie.  Denise The Horror Honey and I both give this one 2 Algae Filled Swimming Pools out of 5.