Don't make me call it Shocktober: vol. VII

Skating on the edge of bankruptcy (yet able to afford a sassy Black housekeeper...did I mention this was made in 2001?), widower Arthur Kriticos (Tony Shalhoub, deserving much better) receives an inheritance from his late uncle Cyrus (F. Murray Abraham, ditto): a glass house that's like a constantly shifting hedge maze. Soon, Arthur, his comely daughter, his murderously irritating son, the housekeeper and others find themselves prey to Cyrus' unusual hobby: 12 murderous ghosts. Chaotic, gory, nonsensical...and yet, surprisingly fun; a fine guilty pleasure from Dark Castle. Matthew Lillard steals the film as a troubled psychic.

Dark Castle likes to switch between composers for its genre projects: John Ottman (who I'll be talking about in the next review) and John Frizzell. Frizzell's score is just as disjointed and busy as the film, but it makes for an interesting listen.

A number of motivic ideas are thrown around for the various ghosts roaming about. The Angry Princess (known as "The Princess" in the track listings, for some reason) is represented with eerie voices. The Juggernaut receives an appropriate mix of booming horns and rattling xylophone. The Hammer gets (what else?) anvil and percussion. The Jackal's appearances are underscored by dentist drill-sounding electric guitars (a nod to the ghost's resemblance to Rob Zombie or am I just reaching?).

Speaking of those guitars, Frizzell's love of experimenting with electronics may turn some listeners off. Despite some fine string work in "What's in the Basement?" and an appearance by the Hammer's motif in "Opening of the Chambers", the techno noodling won't be to every taste. The bounding synths and glass-crack stingers of "Bobby Gets Lost" could also be considered a liability. Noodling electronics begin "Cyrus' Will", but the track soon branches off into forceful chopping strings.

When Frizzell leaves the electronics alone, however, this is a neat little score, as the pounding "The Ghosts Escape" and "The 13th Ghost" can attest. The "Main Titles" start off with gentle harp and flute playing that you'd think was tracked in from another movie, before Frizzell cannily twists the orchestrations to reflect the depression that settles in via the backstory.

"Entering the House" features two of the score's themes: a wavering flute and string melody and an ascending motif of pealing bells, strings and climbing horns. The latter gets a lot of play in the likes of "Junkyard" and "Cyrus Returns" (with booming horns).

"Jean Returns" (spelled "Gene"!) revives the ascending motif and the "Main Title" flute for Arthur's reunion with his wife before the introduction of a new melody of rushing horns and strings. This melody is returned to in "The Machine Destroyed", along with the ascending motif and The Juggernaut's melody (?!), before a calm settles over the cue, with warm strings and woodwinds signalling the end.

The score seems to be out of print, though cheap copies (and audio samples) can be found here.