Horror seems to become popular in waves. Every decade or so some movie seemingly reinvents the wheel of what is scary for the time. This decade for example has seen the rise of Saw inspired “torture porn,” and Americanized versions of foreign (especially Japanese) horror films. In the 90’s it was the pseudo-giallo Scream rip offs, and in the 80’s it was the slasher film.

The slasher genre started out with a bunch of really good, really cool films like Mario Bava’s Twitch of the Death Nerve and Bob Clark’s Black Christmas, however, it really got the attention of Hollywood with John Carpenter’s independent box-office-record-smashing masterpiece Halloween. After Halloween in 1978 the slasher floodgates had opened, studios were making them, independents were making them.

If you walked into a video store horror section you might have thought that all horror films were are masked killers slaughtering sexually promiscuous teenagers. Some of these films were good to great (Friday the 13th, Sleepaway Camp, My Bloody Valentine), some were downright terrible (Happy Birthday to Me, Prom Night, House on Sorority Row). In the age of video tape I was a relentless horror nerd, my local chain store actually had a pretty epic horror selection, and I would always try and rent something I had never seen before. Like a typical horror junkie, I was on the look out for my next fix.

When I rented House on Sorority Row back then I remember hating it within the first 5 minutes. House on Sorority Row is about as cliché as a slasher film gets. However, it does drop the occasional interesting visual element to spice it up, and shows gets things more interesting.

The film tells the story of a group of sorority girls on the eve of graduation decide to throw one last party in their sorority house. The house-mom at this house is quite strict, and bans any sort of party. Instead of getting all droopy, or renting a warehouse or something, they umm….kill her. And after that murders start happening in and around the sorority house.

The synopsis is fairly streamlined, but I have to give sorority row, a bit of credit by trying to push the whodunit angle a bit more than it’s contemporaries. Also, it tries to inject a bit of weirdness involving a local doctor, and the house Mom’s past.

The Blu-ray offers a solid 1080p transfer that is sure to please fans, and an audio track that comes through crisp and clear. Extras include a commentary track, multiple interviews with the cast and crew, an alternate black and white intro, storyboards AND MORE. House on Sorority Row is a kind of cliché slasher affair that is still a fun time, and comes RECOMMENDED. CHECK IT OUT…