Are You in the House Alone?
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''Are You in the House Alone?'' is a 1978 American
made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...
directed by
Walter Grauman Walter E. Grauman (March 17, 1922 – March 20, 2015) was an American director of Theatre director, stage shows, Film director, films and television shows. Early life Grauman was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Jacob and Irene Grauman, both chi ...
and starring
Kathleen Beller Kathleen Beller (born February 19, 1956) is an American actress who was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Actress in a Supporting Role for her role in '' Promises in the Dark'' (1979) and was well known for her role as Ki ...
,
Blythe Danner Blythe Katherine Danner (born February 3, 1943) is an American actress. Accolades she has received include two Primetime Emmy Awards for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Izzy Huffstodt on '' Huff'' (2004–2006), and a ...
, and
Dennis Quaid Dennis William Quaid (born April 9, 1954) is an American actor known for a wide variety of dramatic and comedic roles. First gaining widespread attention in the late 1970s, some of his notable credits include ''Breaking Away'' (1979), '' The ...
. The film is based on the 1976 novel of the same name written by Richard Peck. It originally aired on
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...
on September 20, 1978.


Plot

16-year-old Gail Osborne is a typical high school student with a passion for photography. Six months ago, she and her parents moved from San Francisco to a smaller town due to her father Neil's claim the city was too dangerous following a burglary. Gail, a high-spirited romantic, initially started dating classmate E.K. Miller, but he broke off their relationship because Gail was unwilling to sleep with him. Now, Gail is dating Steve Pastorinis, despite her overprotective mother's objections. After a while, she receives an anonymous letter which says: "I am watching you.” Gail thinks the letter is creepy, but is convinced by her best friend Allison Bremer that it is a practical joke from some student. However, when another note is found saying, "I know where you are I'm watching you you tramp I'm coming after you,” and phone calls from a strange man laughing in a creepy way. Gail decides to warn her principal, who informs her it could be the act of her current or former boyfriend, someone she's rejected, or perhaps someone she knows that's hanging around. One day, Gail tries to tell her mother Anne about the stalking, but Anne is too busy to pay attention and blows Gail off. Therefore, Gail ditches school and heads to San Francisco to visit her father at work. There, she finds out her father has been fired. Back home, she confronts her mother with this, who demands her to keep silent so Neil will not feel ashamed. Gail realizes more serious matters are going on in her life and decides to no longer pay attention to the notes and phone calls. One day when she's late for class, there is another message sticking out of her locker – a black and white picture of herself that she took in photography class with the word "RAPE" all in red across her face. One night, she is babysitting the children of Jessica Hirsch, who is dating Gail's teacher Chris Elden. She receives a phone call from her boyfriend Steve Pastorinis, and he asks if he can come over after work and spend time together. Gail, relieved, says yes, and he tells her he'll be there soon. The phone rings again, and thinking it's Steve she answers, but it's the same stalker, laughing hysterically asking: ''Are you in the house alone?'' Afraid, Gail locks the door and windows all around the house. Someone knocks on the front door. Excited to see Steve, Gail opens the door and sees it's Allison's boyfriend, Phil Lawver. Phil asks if Allison is around because she said she was going to come by, and Gail responds she isn't there. Phil then asks to use the phone to call Allison's house. Phil picks up the receiver and dials the number, but puts his finger on the receiving end to cancel the call and then pretends to be on the phone with Allison's mother while pulling out a handkerchief and wiping off the phone. Gail looks over and sees him wiping the phone and he looks back at her before dropping the phone on the ground. He looks at her and says, "I really had you fooled, didn't I?" Gail lets out a sigh of relief figuring he was pulling a prank on her. Phil then says in a raspy creepy voice "Are you in the house alone?" Phil reveals that it wasn't a prank and that he's been stalking her and knows everything about her. He then attacks her, forces her onto the ground, and proceeds to rape her. Afterwards, he runs out of the house. Due to the trauma, Gail is hospitalized and at first refuses to say that Phil raped her, knowing she won't be believed. Instead, she claims it was all a blur. Another female officer comes in to ask if she can try to remember, and Gail continues to lie out of fear. The female officer leaves, but tells her that if she changes her mind, to call her at the station. She also mentions that if Gail doesn't give her a name, they have no case, and her attacker can do this to someone else. Fearing that some other girl might endure what she just went through, she tells the officer it was Phillip Lawver. Her father is outraged at Phil, but finds out they can not sue him because Phil's father is a close friend of the local judge. Gail is eventually encouraged by her teacher Malevich not to be afraid any longer and she returns to school. There, she finds out another girl is receiving the same creepy notes. Determined to stop Phil, she attempts to catch him on camera. Phil, however, is onto her and attempts to beat her up, but is caught by Steve. In the end, Phil pleads guilty to assault but is not charged with rape. He disappears, and one rumor has it that he is in a boarding school in New Hampshire.


Cast

*
Kathleen Beller Kathleen Beller (born February 19, 1956) is an American actress who was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Actress in a Supporting Role for her role in '' Promises in the Dark'' (1979) and was well known for her role as Ki ...
as Gail Osborne *
Blythe Danner Blythe Katherine Danner (born February 3, 1943) is an American actress. Accolades she has received include two Primetime Emmy Awards for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Izzy Huffstodt on '' Huff'' (2004–2006), and a ...
as Anne Osborne *
Tony Bill Gerard Anthony Bill (born August 23, 1940) is an American actor, producer, and director. He produced the 1973 movie ''The Sting'', for which he shared the Academy Award for Best Picture with Michael Phillips and Julia Phillips. As an actor, Bi ...
as Neil Osborne *
Robin Mattson Robin Mattson is an American actress. She is best known for her roles on the daytime soap operas ''General Hospital'', '' Santa Barbara'', and ''All My Children''. Career Daytime television Mattson made her daytime debut as troubled teen Hope B ...
as Allison Bremer *
Tricia O'Neil Tricia O'Neil (born Patty O'Neil) is an American actress. Early life Born in Shreveport, Louisiana, she is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J. W. O'Neil. The family lived in El Paso, Texas, from 1952 to 1959 and in 1963. O'Neil attended elementary ...
as Jessica Hirsch *
Dennis Quaid Dennis William Quaid (born April 9, 1954) is an American actor known for a wide variety of dramatic and comedic roles. First gaining widespread attention in the late 1970s, some of his notable credits include ''Breaking Away'' (1979), '' The ...
as Phil Lawver *
Alan Fudge Alan Fudge (February 27, 1944 – October 10, 2011) was an American actor known for his roles in four television programs, ''Man from Atlantis'', ''Eischied'', ''Paper Dolls'' and ''Bodies of Evidence'', along with a recurring role on '' 7th Hea ...
as Chris Elden *
Scott Colomby Scott Colomby (born September 19, 1952) is an American film, television, and stage actor, best known for his roles in ''Caddyshack'' (1980) and ''Porky's'' (1982). Life and career Colomby was born in Brooklyn, New York on September 19, 1952. ...
as Steve Pastorinis *
Ellen Travolta Ellen M. Travolta (born October 6, 1939) is an American actress known for playing Louisa Arcola Delvecchio in ''Happy Days'' and ''Joanie Loves Chachi'' as well as Lillian in '' Charles in Charge'' (1987-1990). Early years Ellen M. Travolta wa ...
as Rouillard *Randy Stumpf as E.K. Miller *Magda Harout as Malevich Distribution by
GoodTimes Entertainment GoodTimes Entertainment, Ltd. was an American home video company that originated in 1984 under the name of GoodTimes Home Video. Though it produced its own titles, the company was well known due to its distribution of media from third parties and ...
and Worldvision Home Video and on DVD by
Scream Factory Shout! Factory is an American home video and music company founded in 2002 as Retropolis Entertainment. Its video releases include previously released feature films, classic and contemporary television series, animation, live music, and comedy ...
(under license from MGM Studios) as a double feature with the 1978 horror film ''The Initiation of Sarah'' on December 10, 2013.
Vinegar Syndrome Cellulose acetate film, or safety film, is used in photography as a base material for photographic emulsions. It was introduced in the early 20th century by film manufacturers and intended as a safe film base replacement for unstable and highly ...
released the film on
blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...
as part of their ''Televised Terror'' box set.


References


External links

* {{Walter Grauman 1978 television films 1978 films 1970s thriller films 1978 horror films American horror television films American horror thriller films CBS network films Films directed by Walter Grauman Films based on American novels Films set in San Francisco 1970s English-language films Films about rape 1978 drama films American drama television films 1970s American films