Hellevator is nothing new. Seven years ago a similar game show called "Estate of Panic" ran for six episodes before it was canceled. It was essentially a horror-themed version of Fear Factor which pitted a small group of strangers against each other in various challenges, such as finding hidden objects in a room that was full of water or searching for cash in a spider-filled room as the ceiling slowly came down. As an added twist, the contestants had to find a way out of the room before time expired or they would be trapped in the room and eliminated from the competition. Estate of Panic worked in a weird sort of way thanks in part to a great performance by Steve Valentine as the creepy host and caretaker of the estate and the fact that the show never took itself too seriously.
So along comes Hellevator, which promises us big things with some of the names attached to it. The series has been billed as being from "the producer of Paranormal Activity" Jason Blum. Unfortunately,it appears that Blum's involvement is limited, as the producers listed on the show are all veterans of the game show realm instead of horror movies.
The show is hosted by the Soska Sisters. Most casual viewers may not know that the Soskas are actually horror movie directors known for See No Evil 2 and American Mary. Sadly, it seems that all the twins have been given to do here is provide some occasional off the cuff commentary (which is mostly flat) and push a few buttons to move the scenes along.
Interviews leading up to the premier had the Soskas saying that Hellevator would allow viewers to see what real people would do when placed in scenarios from horror movies. Again, unfortunately it doesn't live up to this billing. For example, one challenge had a contestant pull fake organs out of mutilated corpses and place them on a scale to try to find the correct weight. Another challenge forced a contestant to try to guess which containers to place color- coded lights into while walking on balance beams. If she stepped off the beams and touched the ground, she received a very light electric shock. The challenges are all timed, and the contestants have to make it back to the elevator before time runs out or they'll be left behind. On their way back, they might have an actor jump out at them from around a corner, similar to what you would find in any run of the mill haunted house at Halloween time.
The major issue here is that most viewers are not going to be the least bit scared while watching this. Some of it is gross, but not scary. We know this is a game show, which means we know nothing bad can really happen to them outside of not winning the money. We can laugh at their reactions to the jump scares like we might have when watching the hidden camera show Scare Tactics, but the appeal there is limited.
I would love to see a game show that really pits contestants against classic horror scenarios. Throw some teens out in the woods in the middle of the night and give them six hours to survive without being caught by a masked killer. Put some people in the middle of a fake town and have them try to survive a horde of zombies. Have some contestants try to avoid being killed by a demon as they look for clues about what it is and how to stop it.
But something like that would require a decent budget, some creativity, and most importantly a lot of effort, so that's why we have the fake guts and funhouse scares of Hellevator instead.
