Sartaj Singh
‘House of Spoils’ centers on an ambitious chef who quits her job to open a fine-dining establishment in upstate New York. Finding a long-abandoned mansion, she sets about creating her destination restaurant and begins to notice strange occurrences around the property. As her patrons walk in, the chef finds plants with unique qualities in the estate’s garden and uses them as ingredients. However, their effects manifest themselves in a terrifying fashion, leading to rotting food and insects emerging from gourmet dishes.
As the chef unravels the secrets of the property, she discovers the sanctuary of a coven of witches and the origins of the specter that haunts her. Co-directed by Bridget Savage Cole and Danielle Krudy, the Amazon Prime horror film blends genres as it delves into the chief’s culinary journey while exploring feminist themes of empowerment and ostracization, all wrapped in a narrative that delivers plenty of scares.
10. Bitter Feast (2010)
Directed by Joe Maggio, ‘Bitter Feast’ follows a chef who is fired from his job because of terrible reviews from a food critic and decides to exact terrible revenge. Peter Grey, a once-celebrated chef, sees his career derailed by a scathing review from food critic J.T. Franks. He kidnaps Franks and traps him in a remote cabin, where the critic is subjected to a series of sadistic cooking challenges designed to humiliate and punish him. Like ‘House of Spoils,’ the film combines food culture and horror, pushing the dynamic between artist and critic to an ugly extreme. Just as some may have related to the struggles of the unnamed chef in the former, one can find some semblance of understanding or catharsis through Peter Grey’s mission to disprove someone who doubted him.
9. Gretel & Hansel (2020)
In the directorial hands of Osgood Perkins, ‘Gretel & Hansel’ brings the eponymous German fairytale by the Brothers Grimm to horrifying life with its own interesting twist on the tale. Siblings Gretel and Hansel are disowned by their mother and wander through the misty woods in search of food and shelter. They stumble upon the hut of a mysterious woman named Holda, who feeds them and puts them to work. However, Gretel notices various unsettling signs that Holda isn’t who she appears to be. Perkins’ direction leans heavily on atmospheric tension, with a slow-burn narrative that emphasizes mood, striking visuals, and unsettling sound design. Much like the chef from ‘House of Spoils,’ Gretel and Hansel unwittingly walk into the home of a witch, who is able to grant them food, but at a terrible cost.
8. Flux Gourmet (2022)
Helmed by Peter Strickland, ‘Flux Gourmet’ is an eccentric, dark comedy that delves into the strange world of sonic catering and its culinary art and performance. A group of troubled artists is documented by a hack journalist and funded by an artsy institute as they experiment with sonic catering, which involves bizarrely intertwining food and sound. Led by the obnoxious Elle di Elle, the group seeks to extract ASMR from the sounds made by different foods while suffering from gastrointestinal disorders.
The artists’ obsession with control, their dynamic with the director, and their experiments with food lead to increasingly horrifying and disturbing outcomes. Similar to ‘House of Spoils,’ ‘Flux Gourmet’ builds its interesting premise on food and culinary experimentation, only to layer on horror through it. The film offers a satirical, art-house take on the pretensions of the avant-garde world, making it a fascinating watch for those who appreciate the offbeat storytelling of the former.
7. Dumplings (2004)
Directed by Fruit Chan and also known as ‘Gau ji,’ ‘Dumplings ‘ is a Chinese horror film that follows an aging former actress who takes desperate measures to regain her youth. She eats miracle dumplings with a macabre secret behind them. Mrs. Li is afraid that her fading youth has caused her husband to begin cheating on her with a younger woman. In her anguish, she visits Aunt Mei, a mysterious chef known for her miracle dumplings and their rejuvenating powers.
As Mrs. Li consumes more of the dumplings, she begins to uncover the horrifying secret ingredient that gives them their supposed power. Both ‘House of Spoils’ and ‘Dumplings’ feature dishes that have extraordinary powers derived from mystery ingredients. However, ‘Dumplings’ unflinchingly enters body horror territory that one likely wouldn’t want to experience while trying to enjoy a meal.
6. Fresh (2022)
‘Fresh’ is a chilling and unsettling horror film directed by Mimi Cave. The story follows Noa, a young woman frustrated with the world of online dating, who unexpectedly hits it off with Steve, a charming and seemingly perfect guy she meets at the grocery store. After a romantic weekend getaway, things take a terrifying turn. Noa soon discovers that Steve is not the sweet and caring guy he portrays himself to be and that he lured her into the isolated location to satiate an unusual appetite he harbors. ‘Fresh’ offers a twisted social commentary on the mistreatment of women as they are literally preyed upon, drawing parallels with plot elements from the ‘House of Spoils’ about the hunting of outcast women. ‘Fresh’ has an amusingly dynamic tone as the narrative switches between occasional humor and shocking body horror.
5. Raw (2016)
Also known as ‘Grave,’ the erotic French-language horror film follows a strictly vegetarian veterinary student who undergoes a radical transformation after a hazing ritual forces her to consume raw meat. Justine has stayed away from meat ever since an allergic reaction she had as a child. But when she is bullied into consuming raw meat by seniors at the Saint-Exupéry Veterinary School, she begins to crave human flesh.
As she grapples with her newfound desires, she also goes on a journey of sexual exploration with an attractive student, resisting her burgeoning primal urges. Much like the chef in ‘House of Spoils,’ Justine starts to change dramatically when a foul influence begins to corrupt her. ‘Raw’ seamlessly blends body horror with the coming-of-age themes of sisterhood, identity, and repression.
4. Hunger (2023)
With Sitisiri Mongkolsiri at the helm, Netflix’s ‘Hunger’ narrates the story of a young woman who begins working under an esteemed chef in the world of fine dining, only to realize the grim reality behind the scenes. Aoy runs her family’s fried noodle shop in Bangkok, a humble establishment that is visited by Chef Paul. Recognizing her talents, he offers her the position of a sous chef working under him, which she excitedly accepts. With dreams of moving up in the world, Aoy diligently sets about perfecting her skills. However, Paul demands much more than she is capable of delivering.
If you find yourself interested in the restaurant-establishing plotline in ‘House of Spoils,’ ‘Hunger’ offers a gritty look into the cutthroat world behind the facade of fine dining. In the translated words of Chef Paul himself, “The kitchen is not a democracy, but a dictatorship.” The Thai film offers further insight into the culinary world with thought-provoking themes of class divide, perfection, and self-worth.
3. The Blair Witch Project (1999)
Directed by Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez, ‘The Blair Witch Project’ is a groundbreaking horror film that redefined the found-footage genre and became a wildly successful sleeper hit. The story investigates the disappearance of three student filmmakers through the footage discovered in their filming equipment. Heather, Michael, and Joshua venture into the Black Hills Forest to investigate the local legend of the Blair Witch, trekking through the eerie woodlands as they make a documentary on the urban legend while exploring other unsettling stories in the region.
However, before long, they are lost in the woods, and their hopes of making it back dim along with the fading sunlight. What follows are bone-chilling events as the trio seem to be stalked, with shadows closing in on them. Fans of ‘House of Spoils’ will find some parallels between the chef attempting to unravel the history of the Witch haunting her and the filmmakers setting out on a similar quest into the forest.
2. The Crucible (1996)
Under director Nicholas Hytner, ‘The Crucible’ transports us to the Salem witch trials during the late 17th century. The story revolves around a rural Massachusetts town where John Proctor, a farmer, has an affair with Abigail Williams, setting off a series of false accusations and mass hysteria in the Puritan community. Abigail plans to accuse John’s wife of witchcraft to have him for herself. John faces a moral dilemma, struggling between his desire to protect his name and his duty to stand up for the truth.
‘The Crucible’ will appeal to fans of ‘House of Spoils’ as it offers historical parallels of the witch hunt allegations that were faced by the original owner of the chef’s haunted house. This historical drama is based on Arthur Miller’s 1953 play of the same name and serves as a timeless exploration of how personal vendettas and societal pressures can lead to devastating outcomes.
1. The Changeling (1980)
Masterfully directed by Peter Medak, ‘The Changeling’ follows John Russell as he deliberately isolates himself in an old mansion in the wilderness of Seattle after a tragic accident. Shortly after moving into the labyrinthine property, which had sat vacant for twelve years, John Russell tries to begin composing his next song. However, he is frequently interrupted by intensifying supernatural phenomena.
The floorboards creak ominously at night, there is a tapping on the windows, the taps turn on of their accord, and the wheelchair begins to shift. If ‘House of Spoils’ left you wanting more of a haunted house experience, there is no better film than ‘The Changeling’ to build up palpable psychological tension. The unraveling of a haunting decades-old mystery tied to the house is also in line with the former film.
