If something seems too good to be true, it probably is...
In this haunted house horror, the old adage really holds water. When the Rolf family rents a huge country estate for a summer for only $900 Benjamin Rolf (Oliver Reed) thinks there is something slightly off with Roz Allardyce (Eileen Heckart) and Brother (Burgess Meredith) the eccentric owners. There must be a catch. Roz assures him there is no catch save for their elderly mother who never leaves the house, or her room for that matter. And she only needs three squares a day...how much trouble could that be?
Benjamin's first instinct is to forget the summer at the mansion but his wife Marian (Karen Black) pouts until she gets her way and they are off to summer in the country. They bring with them their son David and Benjamin's Aunt Elizabeth (Bette Davis). As the days drip by, Marian becomes more and more obsessed with caring for Mrs. Allardyce and spends most of her time in the attic sitting room being hypnotized by the enchanting melody from Mrs. Allardyce's music box and dusting her photo collection. The house in
Burnt Offerings seems to feed off each tiny tragedy that happens within- The house grows more and more "healthy" as Aunt Elizabeth's health declines, flowers flourish when David falls and skins his knee, Benjamin's dreams of a maniacal chauffeur from his own Mother's funeral seem to fuel a regeneration, Marian ages 10 years before your very eyes and all the while the house rebuilds...
Oliver Reed reminds me of today's William Shatner and I could not stop focusing on that. Karen Black seemed to look extremely confused at every turn - her facial expressions throughout
Burnt Offerings were really strange. Even though you only see Burgess Meredith for a short moment or two during the movie, he shines as an eccentric old goat. Bette Davis is superb as everyone's favorite Auntie. This movie is NOT fast paced but it does have it's charm - I would not recommend this film for anyone with a short attention span. It is a slow mover, but if you can stick with it, the ending is worth the wait.
Burnt Offerings Movie Cast and Credits
Director
Dan Curtis
Writing credits
Dan Curtis
Robert Marasco novel
William F. Nolan
Cast
Karen Black .... Marian Rolf
Oliver Reed .... Ben Rolf
Burgess Meredith .... Arnold Allardyce
Eileen Heckart .... Roz Allardyce
Lee Montgomery .... David Rolf (as Lee H. Montgomery)
Dub Taylor .... Walker
Bette Davis .... Aunt Elizabeth
Joseph Riley .... Ben's Father
Todd Turquand .... Young Ben
Orin Cannon .... Minister
Jim Myers .... Dr. Ross
Anthony James .... The ChauffeurMore Burnt Offerings Reviews and Information
Burnt Offerings Review from Ravenous MediaReviews and Information on Burnt Offerings Movie from The Internet Movie Database
