Howard Philipps Lovecraft was a remarkable author, and it's often an acquired taste to enjoy many of his stories. It's my opinion that the duller the original Lovecraft story, the more entertaining the film, and vice versa.

This story is middle-of-the-road, and so is the film. It bears all the hallmarks of a standard 1980s horror film, but it has little allusions and touches that those who read Lovecraft would be familiar with would be entertained by. In-jokes, if you will.

The original story was relatively short, and expanding it to feature length probably required the mortising in of the standard horror elements found in 1980s type films. There have been some pretty good films that use these elements -- Pumpkinhead springs to mind -- that even if this film uses those elements, that shouldn't detract from the overall story.

A group of college students decide to check out a reportedly haunted house that turns out to have a hideous and ferocious female beast (an impressively expressive portrayal by Katrin Alexandre) locked up in a vault in the attic.

Writer/director Jean-Paul Oullette relates the enjoyable and engrossing story at a steady pace, takes time to develop the characters, crafts a fun ooga booga atmosphere, and delivers several nice moments of graphic gore. The acceptable acting by the competent cast helps a lot: Mark Kinsey Stephenson makes for an engagingly laidback and eccentric hero as nerdy bookworm Randolph Carter, Charles Klausmeyer likewise registers well as earnest freshman Howard Damon, Alexandra Durrell contributes an appealing turn as sweet foreign exchange student Tanya Heller, and Laura Albert brings a winning blend of sass and spark to her role as the brash Wendy Barnes. The monster manages to be both grotesque and pitiable. As a yummy plus, the delicious Mrs. Albert bares her beautifully bountiful breasts. David Bergeaud's spirited shivery score hits the shuddery spot. Tom Fraser's slick cinematography provides a pleasing polished look. An entertaining little fright flick.