The House on the Edge of the Park (1980)

Genre: Horror

Directed by: Ruggero Deodato

Cast: David A. Hess, Annie Belle, Christian Borromeo

Running time: 91 minutes

Alex is a serial rapist and killer. When the film starts, he is driving alongside a beautiful woman. After exchanging a few looks with her, he cuts her off, forcing her to stop. He gets out of his car, jumps in hers and proceeds to rape and strangle her to death. A while later, Alex is closing for the night the garage where he works as a mechanic with his friend Ricky, as he gets ready to go out to a disco and “boogie”. A black Cadillac drives in, with a yuppie couple inside. The man, Tom, gets out and tells Alex that something is wrong with the car. In a hurry to party, Alex tries to get them to leave, but Ricky decides to take a look. He finds a loose wire and fixes the problem in a matter of seconds. Tom says that they are going to a friend’s house for a party and that they are glad the issue is fixed. Alex asks Tom if Ricky and he can join them, and the yuppie man agrees. Before leaving, Alex fetches a blade from his locker, with the clear intent of doing some damage at the party, but his past might be catching up with him when he gets there.

The House on the Edge of the Park is an English-language Italian exploitation film. It is gritty and dirty, with plenty of nudity

and violence. If that sort of thing bothers you, stay away. The acting is quite cheesy, but that is to be expected with the genre. As for the story, I must admit I found it far-fetched to see how much of a predicament people would be willing to put themselves through for the sake of the “perfect revenge”.

The main actor, David Hess, was quite convincing. He had played a similar role in Wes Craven’s The Last House on the Left, a much better exploitation film. The House on the Edge of the Park pales in comparison. While the Craven classic pulled you in as a spectator, this one made it more difficult to root for any of the characters.

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