La Casa (film series)
A series of retitled horror films marketed as one.
La Casa (lit: The House) is the name given to a collection of mostly unrelated horror films that were retitled and marketed in Italy as one single series. The series includes movies from both the Evil Dead film series and the House film series, as well as unofficial sequels produced by Italian filmmaker Joe D'Amato. The series is notable for the confusion it created in film marketing, with titles and numbering that often contradicted each other across different markets.
- first_film
- La Casa (a.k.a. The Evil Dead) (1981)
- last_film
- La Casa 7 (a.k.a. House III: The Horror Show)
- number_of_films
- 7
- origin_country
- Italy
- notable_filmmaker
- Joe D'Amato
- series_type
- Retitled collection of unrelated horror films
Lore & Background
When first released in 1981, the Sam Raimi-directed horror film The Evil Dead was distributed in Italy under the title La Casa, where it was a box office success. The 1987 sequel Evil Dead II was thus distributed under the similar title La Casa 2, and also did well in the Italian box office. Attempting to capitalize on the successes of the Evil Dead films, Italian filmmaker Joe D'Amato produced an unofficial sequel titled La Casa 3 (later released in English-speaking countries as Ghosthouse). This in turn was followed by two more 'sequels', La Casa 4 (also known as Witchery) and La Casa 5 (also known as Beyond Darkness).
Reader's Guide
The La Casa series is significant as a case study in international film marketing and the confusion that can arise when distributors retitle unrelated films to capitalize on a successful brand. The series mixed the American Evil Dead films with Italian-produced unofficial sequels and later entries from the House film series. The numbering became inconsistent: House II: The Second Story was released in Italy as La casa di Helen, though it is sometimes referred to as 'La Casa 6', a movie that technically doesn't exist. The Horror Show was released as La Casa 7, but when released on DVD in Italy it was retitled La Casa III, taking the international House III as a reference. The original House was released in Italy as Chi è sepolto in quella casa? and was never included as part of the La Casa series. This tangled history illustrates how commercial considerations can override narrative continuity in film distribution.
Did You Know?
- The La Casa series includes movies from both the Evil Dead film series and the House film series.
- Italian filmmaker Joe D'Amato produced an unofficial sequel titled La Casa 3, later released in English as Ghosthouse.
- House II: The Second Story was released in Italy as La casa di Helen, though it's sometimes referred to as 'La Casa 6', a movie that technically doesn't exist.
- The original House was released in Italy as Chi è sepolto in quella casa? and was never included as part of the La Casa series.
More in Horror film series 1-24
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