The People Under The Stairs (1991)
Two hoodlums and a boy named Fool try to get back at their ghetto landlords by robbing their house, only to find that it holds a lot of dark secrets, hidden corridors, and a group of basement dwellers. THE PEOPLE UNDER THE STAIRS is what you get if take the same tonal approach as DEADLY FRIEND and turn it up to 11. The movie is both a rollicking kid-friendly adventure through a demented funhouse and a disturbing thriller that involves cannibalism, incest and racism. It is also an effectively twisted satire on the Reagan era, with the main villain couple looking like the (in)famous White House rulers and the topic of gentrification being crucial to the plot. Make no mistake, this is one wild ride that will spook you while throwing you through a loop. One minute, the Bruno Mars-looking Fool is weaseling through the walls, the next has the matriarch bellowing like she's Bette Davis, and then it continues on with Ronnie running around in a full S&M outfit and a shotgun. It may leave some in a total daze but the sheer amount of thrills and spills is electrifying to watch, creating many moments where you want to stand up and holler, all up to the feel-good ending. If you want to see a darker take on THE GOONIES or watch a horror film with a brain, this one is for you.
FINAL REVIEW: 4 / 5
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