Netflix's original anthology film skilfully entangles terror and suspense, black comedy, and a ghibli-esque hopefulness into a deeply enjoyable tale across three eras and species.
Produced for Netflix by Nexus Studios, who previously worked on Disney+'s Billie Eilish Concert Movie, Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles, earlier last year; The House is a little gem of a film that seem to be continuing to fly under the Netflix Top 10 radar. Following the same mysterious home across time, The House tells three individual stories that are only connected loosely by the titular setting, and the occasional easter egg referencing the previous short in the anthology.
The first of the three half-hour segments, And heard within, a lie is spun, seems to be the most popular of the tales amongst viewers. It is however, also perhaps the most generic. Co-directed by Emma de Swaef and Marc Roels, a lie is spun is a Victorian-era suspense horror following an impoverished family who appears to have been granted a new start at life when father Raymond signs a deal with a mysterious architect to exchange their humble family home for a purpose-built manor house. The only catch, Raymond and his wife Penny have no say in any of their new home's attributes. What follows is an ever-changing maze of attic corridors and disappearing staircases, something which only appears to cause any concern for Raymond and Penny's young daughter, Mabel. Caring for her infant sister, Isobel, Mabel tries to make sense of the mysterious house while her parents are slowly pulled deeper and deeper into the architects cryptic design, eventually, and horrifically so, turning into pieces of the artist's furniture themselves. a lie is spun's climactic body-horror twist is a rather obvious one, and indeed the entire narrative is nothing particularly groundbreaking. However, in spite of this, The House's first tale is still greatly enjoyable and hosts some particularly unsettling imagery, aided by the simple but effective doll-house design of its characters.
The second of The House's stories, Then lost is truth that can't be won is my own personal favourite, and the most surprising of the three. Taking place in a modern-day world inhabited by anthropomorphic rats, Then lost is truth follows a property developer preparing for the biggest day of his life, the open house for the (same) manor he has spent a large sum of time and money transforming into the perfect luxury home. The only nod we get to the house's spooky origins is an unacknowledged post-it-note on the developer's work board to "call back Mabel". Things quickly turn sour for the developer as the home is revealed to be infested with roaches, something he frantically proceeds to clumsily hide with sealant. As the open house begins, a rush of uninterested parties attend, and it seems no one is swayed into purchasing the property. That is until a strange and unsettling couple- both in appearance and attitude- express their "great interest" in the house and quickly, refuse to leave. What ensues is tonally reminiscent of a love child between Wes Anderson's Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) and Darren Aronofsky's Mother! (2017), as the developer becomes more frantic in his attempts to sign off the house and rid himself of the mysterious couple. The second story features the best plot twist of the three, when police arrive at the house to deliver a restraining order against the developer, revealing that the calls he has been making throughout the narrative to his "darling" are actually to his dentist, whom he appears to be stalking. By the climax of the narrative, the developer gives into the couple and joins them, alongside their extended family, and is welcomed in for who he is with open arms. The developer and his fellow rats succumb to their natural animalistic nature, crawling around on all fours, living amongst the filth that the house has now become. They have mirrored and in-turn become the pests the developer spent the entire narrative trying to rid his house of. It is an unnerving and highly effective conclusion, and this, alongside the short's surprising vibrant musical segments make Then lost is truth the story that leaves the most lasting impact after its conclusion.
With the developer's basement room now mysteriously bricked off, the final story of the three, Listen again and seek the sun, takes a complete tonal shift, and is entirely more hopeful in nature. Its lack of macabre may be a turn-off for some watchers, who might find the shift from suspense thriller to drama too jarring. However, Paloma Baeza's mature tale of letting go of the past and searching for a brighter future felt very reminiscent of the work of Studio Ghibli legend Isao Takahata. Where the Then lost is truth saw rats revert back to their natural state, and a lie is spun have its characters let go of their humanity all together, Listen again falls somewhere in between. Set in an unspecified future in which the majority of the world appears to be submerged by water, the House is inhabited by anthropomorphic cats, led by landlord Rosa. Cats stereotypically hate water, and this fear of leaving her home behind to venture into the watery unknown is both metaphorical for Rosa and literal. The cats of Listen again are perhaps the most developed and "human" of the film's characters, all given names and personalities and interests. It's hard not to become invested in the lives of Rosa and her tenants, even in such a short space of time. And out of the three stories of The House, Listen again is undoubtedly the most emotionally mature.
The House is well worth a watch for any animation and thriller fans alike. It is nothing groundbreaking in regards to its storytelling, though pulls you in with its equally charming and disturbing visuals. And with Netflix's impressive and ever-growing track record of investing in experimental and vibrant styles of animation, from the Oscar-nominated I Lost My Body (2019), to last year's criminally underrated Maya and The Three (2021-) one can only hope the streaming giant will continue to embrace the platform it has as space for animation storytellers to thrive.
The House is available to stream now internationally on Netflix.