Motel Hell

In my opinion, there's only one way when mixing comedy and horror actually works, and that's when the comedy is pitch-black. Director Kevin Connor got that part all figured out, and thus MOTEL HELL can be regarded as a successful horror/comedy mixture. It also manages to give a big nod to THE Texas CHAINSAW MASSACRE by paying homage to it and making fun of it (as opposed to what some people might think, MOTEL HELL is not a TCM-rip-off). I even suspect Tobe Hooper might have found some inspiration in MOTEL HELL for his end-battle in TCM 2 between Dennis Hopper and Leatherface.

The cinematography and camera-movements are surprisingly decent for this rather low-budget flick, as well as some make-up effects (I loved it when the camera slowly travels through the dark living-room only to reveal Nancy Parsons hiding behind the door, holding a big knife at the end of the travel-shot). It's best that you know nothing about the story, but then again knowing that it's about a farmer running a hotel does say a lot, doesn't it. Farmer Vincent Smith sure re-defines the word "agri-culture". There isn't very much gore to admire but the idea alone is sick enough to satisfy any horror-fan. The story itself is fun and has a satisfying climax. I only had one problem with the motivations of Nina Axelrod's character. Why wasn't she more upset about her dead boyfriend? Why did she stay with the Smiths anyway? Didn't she have places to go or weren't there friends and family waiting for her? But I guarantee you'll soon forget those questions when she provides some welcome nudity.

So MOTEL HELL has black humor, demented farmers and a creepy motel. That makes up for a good movie, I'd say.

When Terry (Nina Axelrod) survives a crash on a country road on her boyfriend Bo's motorcycle, a seemingly friendly Farmer/Motel owner, Farmer Vincent (Rory Calhoun) and his younger sister Ida (Nancy Parsons) let her stay at the Motel until she recovers. The Motel is well regarding for Farmer Vincent's smoked meats that are as affordable as they are delicious, but little does Terry know that "It takes all kinds of critters to make Farmer Vincent's Fritters"

Originally intended as a much darker film for Texas Chainsaw Massacre director Tobe Hooper, the project originally intended for Universal Studios was cancelled with Hooper dropping out. When the Project was revived with United Artist and British director Kevin Connor better known for his Marc McClure adventure films based on Edgar Rice Burrows books the project scaled back many of the darker, gorier, and taboo aspects of the original screenplay and reformatted the project as a dark comedy/horror. The film was largely ignored upon release by audiences who were irked by the fact the movie was more comedic in contrast to the marketing campaign that emphasized the horror elements. Critical reception was more positive with critics enjoying the satire of Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Psycho as well as a really good performance from Rory Calhoun as Farmer Vincent. While the movie does have some good elements to it, it doesn't go as far as it could've.

The movie is a lot of fun with it's twisted take on the country horror genre which had capture the public through the 70s with films like Deliverance, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Hills Have Eyes, and a number of Ed Gein inspired horror films both mainstream and independent. The movie takes that established framework and fits it through a twisted lens of American pop culture, which brings us to our main villain of the movie Farmer Vincent. Rory Calhoun is an absolute delight as the man, playing the character as a mixture of Orville Redenbacher, Oliver Wendell Douglas, and Ed Gein. The man has a charm to him that makes him seem almost like a spokes person for any number of grocery store products that makes him trust worthy, but also carries enough intensity to be quietly threatening as well. Nancy Parsons is also quite good playing Vincent's sister Ida and the scenes of them in their "secret garden" where they converse while prepping the "meat" are the perfect mixture of creepy and entertaining. In many ways the scenes of Ida and Vincent are like watching the Texas Chainsaw Massacre house if it were framed like an episode of Green Acres (albeit with slightly less grisly details).

The movie is enjoyable, but it has a few drawbacks. Nina Axelrod unfortunately isn't all that interesting as our proxy for much of the movie, and she's not really all that funny or engaging in her scenes. Paul Linke also feels like something of an extraneous character and feels like his character could've been merged with Terry's to create a stronger protagonist. The movie also doesn't have the punch or impact to certain scenes because it doesn't want to get "too gory". The movie doesn't really cut loose until around the last 10 minutes (with a dueling chainsaw battle that's pretty entertaining), and often the movie will cut away from the gorier/meatier bits of the movie. That's a big part of what holds this movie back because unlike Sam Raimi, Peter Jackson, or even some Steve Miner movies it doesn't give that level of impact to itself because it's holding back.

Motel Hell is a good Horror Comedy. It's largely due to Rory Calhoun's strong comic performance that this movie has endeared as long as it has, but there's some funny gags and encounters that make the film quite enjoyable. Our main characters are rather bland unfortunately and the movie shies away from going as far as it could've, but it's a decent movie that deserves an audience.

Kevin Connor's "Motel Hell" is a tremendously fun and engaging horror comedy, impossible not to love in my humble opinion. Right from the opening sequences, the film sells itself as a light-headed and blackly humorous gem that spoofs some of the genre's biggest classics without ever disrespecting them. The references towards milestones like "Psycho" and "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" are obvious but, unlike many haters of "Motel Hell" claim, this is certainly not a rip off! I don't think you can compare the clearly humorous premise of this film, which handles about cultivating human beings to mix the meat with pork, with dead serious stories like the above mentioned "Psycho" or "TCM". Rory Calhoun, usually a western star, is terrifically cast as the traditional and likable Farmer Vincent who's a local demigod in his county, thanks to his uniquely flavored, homemade smoked ham recipe. Of course, nobody knows that Vincent and his sister Ida are totally insane and extract their secret ingredients from nothing less than people, who they "plant" in their garden. This simply is campy entertainment, very tongue-in-cheek, fast-paced and with a couple of adorably gross make-up effects. Connor's directing is solid and he makes excellent use of the typically eerie "redneck" stereotypes, such as the clumsy sheriff and the barbaric farmers. The chainsaw-battle sequence during the finale is a real hoot. Highly recommended for horror fans who don't take themselves too seriously.

Having been increasingly disappointed by the recent slew of 'horror' films that have bee released I was greatly cheered when I caught this at a late night show recently. It was a timely reminder that there is good horror out there - even if it is over 20 years old!! For once, the blending of horror and comedy really works. The film is played dead straight (most of the time) and that is why it succeeds where so many recent horror/comedies fail. By not constantly tipping it's hat to the audience and pointing out how clever it's being it allows the audience to really appreciate how ludicrous it is - without the frequent reminders that the filmmakers think they're cool. In the space of 90mins we get nudity, cannibalism, amateur surgery, a hilarious 'love' story, creepy characters, a dumb policeman, a chainsaw duel, lots of gore and some very spaced out characters. What more could you ask for? It's this movies overwhelming sense of fun that really works. You can imagine the filmmakers laughing their asses off making this - and that enthusiasm comes right of the screen and is very infectious. The audience I saw this with laughed, clapped and some gave it a standing ovation at the end. Do you need a better recommendation?

I love a good horror movie, and I love a good comedy, but very rarely do I enjoy a blending of the two. I expected 'Motel Hell' to disappoint for that reason, but much to my surprise I found it was an extremely enjoyable mixture of black humour and genuinely creepy scenes. One of the reasons the movie works so well is because of the excellent casting choice of Hollywood veteran Rory Calhoun in the lead role of eccentric farmer and Motel manager Vincent Smith. Calhoun was best known for his Westerns, though he made one of two genre movies in his long career including the very silly 'Night Of The Lepus', and the nutty 'Hell Comes To Frogtown'. 'Motel Hell' is quite different to those two, and mostly played straight, which makes it all the more effective. Calhoun is well supported by the less well known Nancy Parsons ('Porky's'), as his equally unbalanced sister. I really liked 'Motel Hell' a lot, and highly recommend it to viewers with a sick sense of humour. Fans of early Tobe Hooper movies, or some of Garth Ennis' comics will especially appreciate it. This movie is a lot of fun! Dig in!