The House(2022)

Submitted by Evan B

This is an anthology, with each segment revolving around denizens of a large house.

I. And Heard Within a Lie is Spun

Mabel (voiced by Mia Goth) lives in a small house with her father Raymond (voiced by Matthew Goode), mother Penny (voiced by Claudie Blackley) and baby sister Isobel (voiced by Eleanor De Swaef-Roels). Although they are poor, they are generally happy. One day, some of Penny’s wealthy relatives visit. The relatives belittle their lifestyle and humiliate Raymond. After they leave, Raymond gets drunk and stumbles into the woods where he meets an architect named Van Schoonbeek. The next morning Van Schoonbeek’s personal assistant Mr. Thomasoffers to move the entire family into a palatial new home that Van Schoonbeek designed (the titular house). The parents take the offer and immediately become enamored with their new estate. But Mabel doesn’t like the house and is saddened when she sees Van Schoonbeek destroy their old home.

Mabel and Isobel find signs that there are sinister goings on in the house. Rooms and hallways are constantly remodeled by creepy workmen and Van Schoonbeek appears as a phantom figure at odd times. Under Van Schoonbeek, Penny and Raymond’s affection for the home grows into obsession and they begin ignoring their children. After getting lost in a labyrinth built in the house, Mabel and Isobel find a weeping Mr. Thomas who reveals he is an actor Van Schoonbeek hired to trick Mabel’s family to moving into the home. The children eventually find their parents, who have been turned into furniture of the house. A fire breaks out, threatening to kill the girls. With the last of their humanity, Raymond and Penny apologize to their kids and help Mabel and Isobel escape. The girls sadly walk away as a fire consumes everything within the house.

II. Then Lost is Truth that Can’t be Won

Much later, rodents rule the world. A mouse (voiced by Jarvis Cocker) has purchased the house and is redeveloping it, hoping to make a small fortune when he resells it. Although the mouse is optimistic, his ambition exceeds his skills and finances, with many of his repairs being shoddy or unappealing. The house is also infested with bugs. The mouse tries several times to kill them, often knocking himself out while applying poison powder throughout the house. Nonetheless, he calls his significant other and promises that they will soon celebrate a big sale. However, the open house is a disaster as most guests don’t like the house or find the mouse irritating. Only two guests (voiced by Sven Wollter and Yvonne Lombard) – who appear to be mutated rodents – show any interest. Rather than buying the house, however, the guests simply move in and begin treating the mouse as a servant. The bugs also continue to infest the house.

The mouse eventually loses his patience (finally realizing the guests will never buy the home) and calls the police. However, the police refuse to help since the mouse is a known nuisance (the significant other he kept calling was actually his dentist who he was harassing and fantasized he was in a relationship with). The mouse tries to poison the rodents with the poison powder, but only ends up putting himself in a coma. When he awakens in the hospital, completely broke, he finds the guests there waiting to take him “home.” The trio go back to the house where the mouse finds the guests have invited their relatives over to stay. With no money or future, the mouse enters the house. The short ends with the mutant rodents eating the interior of the house, and the mouse having reverted to a feral state living with the rodents.

III. Listen Again and See the Sun.

In the further future, the world is now populated by cats. A cat named Rosa (voiced by Susan Wokoma) now owns the house and has grand plans to renovate it. To raise money, she rents out rooms in the house. However, due to a flood that has surrounded the house, she only has two tenants – Elias (voiced by Will Sharp) and Jen (voiced by Helena Bonham Carter) – neither of whom has any money. Each day, the water level rises and encroaches closer to the house. Nonetheless, Rosa believes that if she can just rehab the house enough, she’ll attract “real” tenants.

One day, Jen’s boyfriend Cosmos (voiced by Paul Kaye) arrives on a boat. Elias offers to exchange his carpentry services for free board, which Rosa gladly accepts. But Elias never follows Rosa’s orders, instead pursuing his own agenda. He uses floor boards to build a boat for Elias to escape in and constructs a mysterious lever on the property. As Rosa becomes more exasperated, Jen confides that she and Cosmos plan to leave the next day and urges Rosa to abandon the house too (noting that the floodwater will likely enter the house the next day). Rosa refuses to abandon the house and watches as Cosmos and Jen sail away. As they sail into the distance, Rosa changes her mind as the waters enter the lobby. She pulls the lever and the mechanism converts the house into a giant ship. An elated Rosa sails the house to a new future alongside the boats of Jen, Cosmos, and Elias.