825 Forest Road

This movie was pretty slow moving and developing also not the best acting, but boy oh boy the scary scenes were very scary. It was pretty difficult to stay with due to slow development, but once it got going I was happy I stuck it out.

I would have to recommend this movie fir a time you are looking for a scary movie that has a new fresh approach to haunted house and human possession.

The movie is eerie and has some good jump scares. Not for the faint of heart.

I was between a rating of 6 and 7. I would have given a higher score if the acting was better and if the story moved along quicker..

Alright, let's just be real-825 Forest Road sucks. It's one of those movies where halfway through, you're checking how much time's left and hoping everyone just dies already so it can end. The setup isn't terrible-creepy house, weird vibes-but it feels like it was written by AI that got bored halfway through.

Doing this story in chapters was a huge misstep, ESPECIALLY from different angles of the same events. They should have done it from the POV of the vlogger and just run with found footage/view from the audience.

As a massive Hell House LLC fan... I was let down. Obviously it doesn't have to try and be Hell House, but it can at least be well made and scenes that are truly scary...

I recently watched 825 Forest Road (2025) on Shudder. The story follows a family searching for a fresh start who move into a new house in a small town. Unfortunately, the town-and the house-have a dark history that threatens to make their new beginning anything but refreshing.

The film is written and directed by Stephen Cognetti (Hell House LLC) and stars Elizabeth Vermilyea (Hell House LLC: Lineage), Kathryn Miller (Nefarious), Joe Bandelli (Hell House LLC), and Brian Anthony Wilson (Law Abiding Citizen).

This is one of those horror films that focuses more on building a backstory and explaining why things are happening rather than showing them unfold on screen. I found myself wanting more horror scenes-it felt slow at times and bordered on boring. That said, when the horror finally kicks in, the effects are well done. There are solid practical effects, effective makeup to enhance the haunted visuals, and a couple of decent jump scares.

Still, it's the kind of film where you might find yourself checking your phone regularly, waiting for something to happen.

In conclusion, 825 Forest Road has a few redeeming elements, but ultimately it doesn't do enough to stand out in the haunted house subgenre. I'd give it a 5/10.

It begins well with a suitably creepy opening with a zoom call between two girls, there is an ambient ' Silent Hill' small town vibe (and the town looks lush) which always appeals to me in any horror film.

Rather than the usual blood/gore this acts as a quiet sometimes reflective horror about dark past secrets. It reminded me of Ti West's ' The Innkeepers' and John Irvin's Ghost Story.

It has a few effective creepy scenes-the piano scene being one of them.

What lets it down is I couldn't take the character ' Isabel' looking way older than she is. She clearly looks mid 20s tops, so when he brother asks her how she is getting on at school I just laughed.

The scares, although well done, were signposted way too soon. The creepy doll (Mia lookalike!!) was put into frame once the camera panned either left or right and a movement by the ghost in the background was an ill judged piece of mis-direction.

The various POVs were unsubtle and added nothing to proceedings as a whole and the ' teenage' love interest was the usual tedious ' tick box' exercise so prevalent in movies nowadays- and they had zero chemistry.

It's one of those films that could have been better and shows how old I've become in seeing where and when the scares come along; however if either Elsie and Molly want a old fashioned ghost story I would recommend.

I can see why this movie is somewhat divisive. There ARE indeed some good elements in it like one reviewer stated in his/her title.

I would say what really props up this movie at all is the tense atmosphere. The acting overall is decent, not as cringeworthy as many of these modern day Horror films.

I personally like the approach when you have this small, rural town where everyone knows something is not right. That aspect I thought was done very well.

I just don't feel that there was quite enough substance and weight truly to carry the story as well as it should have been. There were definitely instances of genuine creepiness, but perhaps if the writing/plot could have been thought out a bit more thoroughly, I think it really could have been a lot better.

Yes, many good elements are there, but I think maybe a bit more skill was needed to bring it together and really make it much more strongly effective and powerful to the audience.

I was torn between giving it a '5' or a '6', but in considering the sum of everything, I ended up with a '5' So, there is some entertainment value here, but ultimately I honestly feel it is a bit too flawed to be called really good.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ MY PARTICULAR WAY OF RATING:

5 - Flawed, but with some entertainment value.

6. A decently passable story maybe worth a watch.

7. A solid film, well made, effective, and entertaining.

And, obviously, you can probably figure out what above and below these would mean... : )