American Gothic is a 1988 slasher film directed by John Hough and starring Rod Steiger, Yvonne De Carlo, Janet Wright, and Michael J. Pollard.

Its plot follows a group of travelers who become stranded on an island where they find themselves in the clutches of a demented family of murderers.

After entering the cottage and fooling around a bit, they meet the owners, an elderly married couple going by the simple names of Ma and Pa.

That night, Ma and Pa throw more strict rules in, such as no cussing and forcing the girls and boys apart to prevent premarital sex.

The night passes by, and the next morning, Rob goes for a walk and finds Fanny pushing her brother, Woody, on a crudely crafted swing.

The film ends as Cynthia goes upstairs, sits in Fanny's room, and slowly begins rocking the cradle, singing a soft lullaby.

[7][8] Actress Sarah Torgov described the shoot as physically taxing due to the tight schedule and cold weather conditions, and recalled that she slept an average of four hours per night.

[11][12] Fangoria stated the film was being prepared for a July or August released on home video by Vidmark Entertainment.

It was re-released by Stax Entertainment in the United Kingdom on 27 March 2006, in a truncated cut, running 85 minutes.

[12] The Los Angeles Times's Michael Wilmington summarized: "Devotees of mindless, squalid movies might find something to enjoy in the consciously camp shocker American Gothic...  so might people trying to get away from the summer heat.

"[17] VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever, awarded the film their lowest rating, calling it "A stultifying career low for all involved.

"[18] A critic for the New York Daily News noted that while the plot is "pedestrian," the film "comes through with an impressive array of truly sicko surprises...  Rod Steiger and Yvonne De Carlo are consistently entertaining in what may be the most humiliating roles of their already checkered careers.

"[19] TV Guide awarded the film two out of five stars, writing: "Despite the rather obvious plotting, derivative of everything from Psycho and more recent Spam-in-a-cabin epics to The Most Dangerous Game, this Canadian effort is mildly interesting.

Torgov's part is better written, and she makes the most of it, letting us see madness in her eyes better than anyone since Barbara Steele.