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      Who Slew Auntie Roo?

      PG-13 1972 1 hr. 29 min. Horror List
      60% 10 Reviews Tomatometer 42% 250+ Ratings Audience Score Mrs. Forrest (Shelley Winters), who's known as "Auntie Roo," has a holiday tradition of inviting orphans to her mansion for a party. But Roo isn't completely sane; she lost her husband and is obsessed with her deceased daughter, whose corpse she still keeps in the house. So when Katy Coombs (Chloe Franks) sneaks into the party with her brother, Christopher (Mark Lester), the deranged lady abducts the young girl with the hopes of replacing her daughter. Christopher must then try to save Katy. Read More Read Less

      Audience Reviews

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      Jeff M I'm dying to do some research on this movie to find out if the filmmakers were trying to make a legitimately good movie or a satire. I have a feeling the former is correct, which brings me great satisfaction to be able to add this to my sacred pantheon of "so bad they're good" movies. There are scenes here that feel like they could have inspired future films like THE NAKED GUN - including a scene in which a teddy bear is thrown at a character who reacts like she just had acid poured on her face. This is ripe for a RiffTrax version if it hasn't been done already. Much has been said about popular actresses of this era who were unable to get reputable work as they got older and were reduced to endeavors such as these. Two-time Oscar winner Winters is a prime example, and she chews the scenery like she hasn't eaten in months. She also sings a couple songs that are among the deliciously worst things I've heard in my life. It's all a bit surreal and a welcome addition to your next Hansel and Gretel marathon. This would be a fun watch next Halloween, especially if you have younger kids interested in horror movies but not mature enough for the normal fare. There's not a drop of blood, and the horror parts are laughable enough that they're unlikely to scar anyone over 18 months. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/11/24 Full Review dave s Who Slew Auntie Roo?, a retelling of Hansel and Gretel, features Shelley Winters as a mother grieving for a daughter who was killed years earlier in an accident, which is perfectly normal other than the fact that she still keeps the rotting corpse of the child in her home. When she decides to replace the dearly departed with an orphan (Chloe Franks) from a nearby institute, the young girl's brother (Mark Lester) comes to the rescue. Despite decent production values (other than some irritating editing), Who Slew Auntie Roo? is ultimately done in by an outrageously campy performance from Winters, who seemed to specialize in these wacked out type of roles in the latter years of her otherwise impressive career. Anyone with a taste for 70s camp will probably enjoy this bit of weirdness. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review joe m "Who Slew Auntie Roo?" turned out to be better than I thought, mostly due to an over the top performance by Shelley Winters. It's a bit juvenile in that Brit way yet it then goes completely bonkers in the end with an unexpected level of dark humor. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Audience Member Movie drag Blobbo to garbage dump, leave there. (Did movie have end? No know. Blobbo turn off with time to go.) Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 01/17/23 Full Review martin a An interesting film, sad in many ways, a woman loses her child and is taken advantage by staff, but she kidnaps two orphans from the local orphanage who are quite cruel to her. mixed up and sad but very watchable Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member bad but good movie :) from the adults to the kids all CRAZY!!! LOVE IT Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/18/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      Who Slew Auntie Roo?

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      Critics Reviews

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      Saffron Maeve Screen Slate An exercise in hagsploitation and mommy issues (the two are seldom mutually exclusive), Preminger pastiche and folk-tale simplicity, <i>Whoever Slew Auntie Roo?</i> is a terribly good time. Jul 2, 2022 Full Review Nicholas Bell IONCINEMA.com Anyone expecting thrills, either campy or creepy, will be disappointed in this Curtis Harrington title, a director who usually excels in weird, offbeat genre efforts. Rated: 2/5 Sep 30, 2020 Full Review Eve Tushnet Patheos Like the greatest camp, Auntie Roo is unafraid to strike a frankly tragic note. Jan 23, 2020 Full Review Steve Crum Video-Reviewmaster.com Shelley Winters tries the Baby Jane route, unfortunately. Rated: 2/5 May 11, 2006 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: 3/5 Jul 19, 2005 Full Review Philip Martin Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Rated: 3/5 Jan 10, 2005 Full Review Read all reviews

      Movie Info

      Synopsis Mrs. Forrest (Shelley Winters), who's known as "Auntie Roo," has a holiday tradition of inviting orphans to her mansion for a party. But Roo isn't completely sane; she lost her husband and is obsessed with her deceased daughter, whose corpse she still keeps in the house. So when Katy Coombs (Chloe Franks) sneaks into the party with her brother, Christopher (Mark Lester), the deranged lady abducts the young girl with the hopes of replacing her daughter. Christopher must then try to save Katy.
      Director
      Curtis Harrington
      Executive Producer
      Louis M. Heyward
      Screenwriter
      Robert Blees, Jimmy Sangster
      Production Co
      American Internat'l Pics
      Rating
      PG-13 (Some Disturbing Behavior|Some Disturbing Images)
      Genre
      Horror
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (Streaming)
      May 22, 2017