The Grand Illusion

PREY. SLAY. DISPLAY. 20th anniversary of the wildly entertaining camp-adjacent slasher!

A group of college friends, including Wade (Jared Padalecki) and his girlfriend, Carly (Elisha Cuthbert), are en route to a school football game when they wind up with a flat tire on the outskirts of a ghost town, forcing them to seek help in the only place that appears to be open: the town’s local wax museum. Once inside the spooky and seemingly abandoned building, they find the works on display are not quite what they seem — and quickly discover they must fight to survive to keep from becoming the next exhibit.

With a cast mostly made up of pretty TV actors and, of course, Paris Hilton, HOUSE OF WAX is more of an entry in the teen slasher genre than a remake of the 1953 Vincent Price vehicle of the same name. The tropes are there: broken down car, middle of nowhere, couples splintering off, weirdo locals – but the inventiveness comes from the wax museum set up, the gnarly death scenes, and the creepy villains, providing plenty of fun scares and memorable set pieces.

Part of our Summer Camp series at Here-After.

Please note: Here-After is a 21 and over establishment. The entrance is via the alley in back of The Crocodile building. Get there early to order tasty beverages from the bar and delicious food from Tat’s Deli!

“…an example par excellence of aughts horror.” Jordan Crucciola, Vulture

“It takes confidence and hubris to challenge horror fans with remakes that become a different beast. When House of Wax swings, it swings so immeasurably hard that you become engulfed by the originality taking a new shape.” Matt Donato, Bloody Disgusting

“House of Wax is easily one of the most purely entertaining studio horror films of the 2000s.” Screen Slate