Review of Hollywood Horror House

This film is often omitted from published filmographies of Hollywood royalty Miriam Hopkins and it's hard to understand why. George Eels in GINGER, LORETTA, AND IRENE WHO? and James Robert Parish in THE PARAMOUNT PRETTIES at least acknowledge its existence with George saying "Mercifully it was never released" -but that isn't true. I have a late 60s Mexican lobby card from the film's original release and actually saw this at the Drive-In in the mid-70s. Shamelessly ripping off SUNSET BLVD. and NIGHT MUST FALL, COMEBACK also resembles BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS in its psychedelic indictment of a morally decadent Hollywood in the wake of the Ramon Novarro and Sharon Tate murders. It tells the tale of a deluded diva with dreams of a cinematic comeback (Miriam Hopkins) who takes up with a sinister hippie hunk (John Garfield, Jr.) while a maniac is dismembering middle-age dames and leaving their body parts under the dilapidated "Hollywood" sign up in the hills. The story is devoid of any real suspense as the audience sees the protagonist commit a grisly murder right after the opening credits but the abrupt open-ended ending is unintentionally unsettling. Gale Sondergaard is a regally mysterious red herring in the proceedings as Miriam's devoted secretary and also along for the ride are Minta Durfee (Mrs. Fatty Arbuckle), Florence Lake, and the Three Stooges' Joe Besser as a Hollywood Tour Bus guide. There's no denying this is a decidedly low budget endeavor but that fact is cleverly disguised by setting the scene almost entirely at silent screen star Norma Talmadge's beautiful rococo estate. This is quite a curio/reel treat for Miriam Hopkins fans and the film shows just how much class former stars like Miriam, Tallulah, Joan, and Bette gave the "Grand Guignol Granny" horror sub-genre. Hopkins has a very brief semi-nude scene (!) in profile when she rises from her massage table that is worth the price of admission alone and, if taken in the right frame of mind, the whole film can be a lot of fun. Like WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE? and SUNSET BLVD., the movie also uses stills, posters, and film clips from its star's Hollywood heyday as glamorous props; there's even a life-sized Miriam Hopkins doll the twisted anti-hero takes to bed. The cast is in pretty good physical shape and the Pop-60s clothes and decor set them off to good advantage. There's some campy fun as Miriam gets drunk atop the Santa float during the annual Tinseltown Christmas Parade ("Too many queers on the Boulevard!", she slurs!). Some fans may be appalled to see their Miriam lip-lock Garfield (whatever happened to him?), get drunk, drugged, punched in the face, and appear au naturel for a split second but it's obvious she was having a ball and laughed all the way to the bank. These late 60s/early 70s "Hollywood horror" stories are a sub-genre all their own and are held in high esteem by exploitation trash aficionados everywhere. Other films of note from the same era have Rita Hayworth rolling and smoking a joint (THE NAKED ZOO), Lana Turner getting slipped some acid (THE BIG CUBE), and Jennifer Jones relishing her porno past (ANGEL, ANGEL, DOWN WE GO). All come "highly" recommended, of course!