ELVIRA'S HAUNTED HILLS (2001) By Terry L. DuFoe Raiting: oo - 89 minutes. Unreleased. May go to DVD and Video. D; Sam Irving. Cassandra Peterson, Richard O'Brien, Mary Scheer, Scott Atkinson, Heather Hopper, Mary Jo Smith, Gabi Andronache, Lucia Maier, Mark Pierson, Theodor Danetti, Constatin Cotimanis, Remus Cernat, Jerry Jackson. I screened Haunted Hills by invitation from producer Mark Pierson. Pierson and wife Cassandra Peterson had just returned from Romania where they had finished production over Christmas of 2000. The film was to be released Halloween of 2001. The Elvira project was partially financed by Pierson who put up about half the money while his parents footed the rest of the bill. I asked Mark Pierson if this made him nervous considering the low budget production of a million and a half came partially from the people who raised him. Pierson, a newcomer to film production, replied, "At times. After the success of the first Elvira movie, a second film came close a couple of times, but it didn't happen and if we're going to make it happen we're going to have to do it ourselves." Pierson admitted that he had no experience in the field of marketing, publicizing, and selling the feature directly to a distributor without an agent or studio support. Elvira's Haunted Hills is a perfect example of a good idea gone wrong. While I respect Piersons efforts in the tradition of Ed Wood and pioneer directors like George Romero, Mark Pierson should have studied their methods more closely, for this supposed Halloween classic has yet to be screened in anything less than film festivals, gay and lesbian fundraisers, and a La Rocky Horror Show convention. Even worse, the Rocky Horror cast that threw this convention exploited Pierson's lack of distribution experience by boasting their event as the official Haunted Hills world premier on the Internet Movie Database. After breaking from all Elvira's ties with mainstream Hollywood, this self made film suffered greatly from Piersons association with the local Rocky Horror event where a Hollywood premier would have guaranteed it deserved publicity and possible release. It has been thirteen years since Elvira hit the screen with Elvira Mistress of the Dark. Since then, anticipation has been high for her return. Elvira's Haunted Hills is not a sequel to the first film and unfortunately the shooting schedule that took place over two months shows a grand effort that falls short with a muddy plot and poor special effects. It's loosely based on the Roger Corman, Vincent Price, Poe films but pales in comparison to anything released by it's predecessor American International. The jokes are there as in the first film but the gags are too late too soon as the movie spoofs outdated 90's movies like Titanic that is very typical of the Elvira stage show at Knott's Berry Farm. A cheesy sight gag where Elvira's arms becomes overly stretched appears cartoonish and was better done in a vintage 30's Laurel and Hardy film. The plot unfolds in 1851 Carpathia where Elvira's dreams of performing in a Parisian Revue, 'Yes I Can-Can', is put on hold. She gets kicked out of an inn over a slight monetary discrepancy and is rescued (?) by Dr. Bradley Bradley (Scott Atkinson) who takes her to Castle Hellsubus where she meets moody and brooding Richard O'Brien. O'Brien plays the quirky Count Vladimir. Elvira learns of the family curse that revolves around Count Vladimir's missing former wife Elura (also Peterson) who may have been done in by her evil husband. Vladimir's second wife Ema (Mary Scheer) attempts to drive the suffering Count insane with her not so secret lover Dr. Bradley Bradley and the rest is typical overkill in their poor attempts to spoof a genre better left to the drive in movie masters of yesteryear. The only highlight is a key point in the film when O'Brien straps Elvira to a stone slab where they re-enact a classic scene from the Vincent Price film The Pit and the Pendulum. During an earlier interview O'Brien related to me that he was indeed a Vincent Price fan and his admiration for Price clearly comes to light where he shines in his parody of the classic Poe scene. Cassandra Peterson at 50 seems to still enjoy the portrayal of her character and is quite relaxed with the persona that she has created. The film consists of mostly jokes referring to her cleavage of which at her age may mark a final appearance of the Mistress of the Dark. While the actress still bears a striking visualization, the actress well knows that nature will not allow one to be a sex symbol forever. During my interview Peterson's husband, Mark Pierson, revealed that his wife may be retiring the character this year and the future may hold an entirely different actress portraying Elvira. Perhaps the indecision of retiring played heavy on Cassandra's film portrayal, for she seems bored and quite out of character at times even though she still feels comfortable with the sexual innuendoes that made her a cult genre icon. If Cassandra Peterson retires in 2002 then Elvira's Haunted Hills should have and could have been a very important film. Unfortunately, in HollyWEIRD fading icons are often remembered for their "Z" work rather than their "B" work. It is clear that this film will never achieve true cult status and I would have preferred to have her career end with the tighter and funnier Elvira Mistress of the Dark from 1988. As talented as this 80's icon might be, one actress can not create a film classic alone, and that includes Cassandra Peterson. The movie spoof would have benefited from a better supporting cast instead of casting first time actors and voice artist like Mary Scheer (Batman Beyond)who also appeared in the 1988 X rated film The Nude Adventures of Pippi Longstocking. Haunted Hills remains unreleased but a mailing list is being compiled at elvira.com where the film is sure to be sold directly to the consumer on dvd and video. I doubt if Elviras Haunted Hills will ever be released in the USA theatrically but it might be an interesting addition to your personal collection if you are a die hard fan. However, we recommend that you do not compare it to her earlier film work which was better handled by production professionals. During my Haunted Hills interview (Fall 2001 #40) Mark Pierson boasted that with his new involvement, he no longer has to hear, "Oh, you're the actress's husband. That's nice. Go over there and watch us do what we do." After viewing this film you may feel that Mark Pierson should have taken their advice.