Havenhurst

The ending was so botched, I can't help thinking the crew itself got "evicted" half way through the filming (read, ran out of money or fell apart). Despite the weird behavior of several characters, the story had a good potential till it suddenly, stupidly, untimely took a twist that is so used and abused, it doesn't even elicit a chuckle anymore. It just made an impression that the crew abruptly pulled the plug in the middle of all the action. Movies like this make me wonder how someone gets so much money, convinces a bunch of talented people to participate (most of the actors, the operator was pretty good), and is not held accountable for making bad script decisions that inevitably cut any hope for a good payout. Anyway. If you are reading this review, be smarter than me and trust the low rating: it is not an underrated gem. You would waste your time.

A woman is in a sobriety program after her drunk driving ended up killing her daughter. She moves into a huge Gothic style apartment where other addicts reside trying to better themselves. If anyone has a slip and falls off the wagon the house removes them fast. She tries to find out where the house takes these people who are never seen again.

This is loosely based on a late 1800's serial killer H.H. Holmes who built a murder house and claimed to kill over 200 people but was closer to 10 in reality. The house in the flick does have some cool trap doors and hidden rooms where some sick surgeries take place. There are some good gore effects but they are only utilized a couple of times. Not much time is spent giving any background to the story or even the characters really, which makes you kind of step back a bit, instead of immersing yourself into the story. I didn't like the ending but a sequel could fix everything.

5 twitching torsos out of 10.

This could have been a Gothic horror but sadly it fails. It all starts promising with the dissapearance of a tenant. But once her best friend starts to investigate this flick has nothing really to offer.

It never becomes scary or bloody or at such a house even creepy. I admit, the beginning do shows some red stuff and in the basement there's a gory shot but overall something is missing to make it worth searching out. And the acting was okay but being low profile on the horror it makes it after a while hard to sit through. All characters and cliches are in this flick but it doesn't work out, it's all predictable.

Gore 0,5/5 Nudity 0,5/5 Effects 2,5/5 Story 2,5/5 Comedy 0/5

I would describe Havenhurst as a horror movie of TV-format, which means you won't get any real gore (besides a few glimpses here and there and rather uninspired and pretty standard ones) and the dose of real horror is not a strong one. Acting and production (settings!) is rock solid, and it is nice to watch Julie Benz once again. The ending is of course a little bit obscure and weak (police not searching the house thoroughly etc.) Recommended if you want to kill some time and/or you like to watch Julie.

Julie Benz & Danielle Harris in the same film? Yes please, I thought when the credits began but alas it wasn't meant to be. Harris may possibly have been there as a favour to someone as her total screen time is barely 60 seconds.

Havenhurst is a gigantic apartment building for people to put their lives back together. It's full of former alcoholics, drug addicts and various criminal types and that's where our heroine moves in seeking her missing best friend.

If you play nice it's a great place to live but should you return to your old ways you'll find yourself in a world of trouble.

Julie Benz is an incredible actress, a tour de force and is always fantastic to watch. It's rare to see her as the leading lady so it was nice to see her get her chance here. She does a brilliant job and the movies concept is actually quite intriguing especially near the end where a big twist occurs.

I walked away from this feeling that something was missing, maybe the delivery wasn't on point, maybe it was too short or maybe the finale didn't appease me. Regardless Havenhurst is a decent enough watch and could potentially see a sequel or even a franchise.

The Good:

Julie Benz

Great twist

Very original

The Bad:

Awful cover

Feels incomplete somehow

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

Julie Benz doesn't age, seriously it's getting ridiculous

Danielle Harris may well have been in the movie more than I realised, she's just so tiny maybe I missed her