THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY aka Quella villa accanto al cimitero 4K RESTORATION

• Director: Lucio Fulci
• Cast: Catriona MacColl, Paolo Malco, Ania Pieroni, Giovanni Frezza
• 1981 | Film: 86mins | Italy | Subtitles | Event: 20:45 – 23:10 [18+]

An evil force lurking in the basement of a New England home has set its sights on the new owners.

“READ THE FINE PRINT. YOU MAY HAVE JUST MORTGAGED YOUR LIFE.”

Cult film night BAR TRASH continues with BANNED, an uncensored season of the Video Nasties.

Lucio Fulci, aka ‘The Godfather of Gore’ had multiple films on the Video Nasties lists, including ZOMBIE FLESH EATERS (1979) and THE BEYOND (1981). His ultra-violent film THE NEW YORK RIPPER (1982) was deemed to be ”the most damaging film I have ever seen in my whole life” by the British Board of Film Censors and was banned outright, the film reels deported to Italy.

THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY aka ‘Quella villa accanto al cimitero’ (1981) “showcases the malevolent maestro at his blood-drenched best” (Arrow Films) and is the final film in the Fulci’s loosely affiliated ‘Gates Of Hell’ trilogy (don’t worry, seeing the others won’t make this one make any more sense…). We’re showing the recent 4K Restoration of THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY which serves this Italian slice of ultra-violent horror cinema exactly as you’d hope, with stunning widescreen cinematography, vivid gore FX, and an unhinged soundtrack by Walter Rizzati.

Screening THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY presents a conundrum: should we show it in English or Italian? Both language tracks were recorded in post-production, as was standard practice in the Italian film industry, but we are showing the English version as this was the language spoken by most of the cast on set and matches the dubbing best. We can only apologise for the horrifying consequences…

THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY was originally passed with cuts by the British Board of Film Censors for cinema release in 1981. The same version was initially released on uncertified home video before being banned during the Video Nasties furore. The film was then re-released with over 4 minutes of cuts to achieve an 18 certificate in 1988, and re-released with 33 seconds of cuts in 2001. The film was finally released fully uncut in 2009.

Polite warning: THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY contains scenes of “strong bloody gore and horror” (BBFC). We are showing THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY fully uncensored in English with subtitles from the best available digital source. The dubbed voice for Bob (Giovanni Frezza) will rot your brain. Forgive us.

/// BAR TRASH is a celebration of cult and curious cinema, hosted by queer film fanatic, Token Homo. Films are served with themed drinks, introductions, intermissions, prize giveaways, and subtitles/captions where possible. Tickets from £3. Strictly adults 18+ only. Follow @tokenhomo on Instagram for news and updates. ///