Gallows Hill

I watched this last night and feel compelled to make this the first review I have done on IMDb. I'm a huge Horror film fan and usually enjoy even the most generic of them. However, this is most definitely the exception.

I'm not sure what exactly it does that is so wrong, but somehow it manages to create zero atmosphere, zero scares, and zero enjoyment. It shouldn't be the case though, with many of the elements there which usually make an at least passable horror film.

(possible minor spoilers ahead in the check list, although I'm sure all are mentioned in the synopsis)

Old house in the middle of nowhere...check. Bad weather...check. Shifty old dude...check. Possessed kid...check.

Yet, for some reason it just fails miserably.

I watched 'Livid' the night before, and whilst not great, it did at least have a tense, foreboding feel about it. Which at least made it worth a watch.

The acting is poor in The Damned, the script is poor, the effects are poor and even the cinematography isn't great either. Not to mention it's almost completely devoid of any 'scares'.

It's the first Horror movie in quite a while in which I found myself utterly bored.

As the headline above says, this is best avoided.

Released in 2013 and in the European shops in 2015, it should had to ring a bell but it didn't and I picked it up. Was it good, no therefore it wasn't scary enough and had too much of CGI but it wasn't that bad also because towards the end the horror really comes in.

I just had mixed feelings towards this flick because some things do work like the possession but it's the CGI done to make their faces creepy that didn't work for me. BUt I can say that teenagers could have their scary moments watching it but for me it was a bit too soft on that part. But somehow I kept watching it to see how it would end because the ghost moves from body to body. There isn't that much blood or even say gore to catch but for the Kleenex abusers there's a tittie to see from the prettiest chick in The Damned.

Mediocre for me but I grew up in the slasher heydays but for newcomers it is a must see.

Gore 1/5 Nudity 0,5/5 Effects 2/5 Story 2/5 Comedy 0/5

Basically, that's it...

The mood and look of the film were very good. The primary concept was fine, although somewhat familiar.

Many times with these Horror movies what really lets them down is subpar acting. But, I must admit that in this case I truly did not feel that there was anything wrong with the acting, all concerned did a fine job representing their roles.

And, without spoiling anything, one thing that I felt that did stand out, although it was very brief and somewhat minor towards the end, was that there was an added ability of the 'Entity' that was kind of a cool idea and revealed some surprising things.

But, ultimately, and I can't honestly point out exactly what was missing here, but the resulting story just seemed to end up without quite as much of a 'Punch' as I think it could have.

So, a somewhat familiar type story told in a competent way, but all in all not really anything that stands out in any way. A mildly decent watch if you don't have a whole lot else going on... : )

OK so apparently Witches are the new concept to exploit. And apparently they can't die or something. This film was an opportunity to make a really sincerely scary horror film, but "the Damned" just doesn't hold it's weight. The movie was somewhat confusing, and overall it just wasn't scary enough. It started off a little creepy and atmospheric but that's only because the viewer is led on by gloomy surroundings and the location of the hotel they end up at. But once the "secrets" are revealed, it's pretty much all downhill. IFC has some very good films but this is one of the weaker ones. "The Squad" is a horror film that is also about witches and I totally recommend it over this movie.

And a good half of this movie is spoken in it. I've encountered this several times. Keeping up with Spanish subtitles is not an easy task.

In what feels like the world's most expedited setup, you need to pay close attention as characters, relations, and motives fly by. It seems like Gina (Jill's father's dead ex-wife's sister, if you've got your ears tuned in) is doing some faux interview with her friend Jill (filmed by her new love interest, Ramon, who is apparently part of the "family," as everyone and their brother implies throughout). Later, Gina tries to get some "dirt," implying she wants to be an investigative journalist... This subplot is not explored.

No, Jill's father and his fiance spring up in Columbia (surprise!) by examining Jill's credit card statements, because his wedding is in like 8 days or something? Oh, so they're in this mad rush because Jill's passport is at Gina's, they need to catch a plane, and they're hauling up a mountain dirt road in the middle of a tropical storm. What's the worst that could happen?

They get stranded at an old inn located in the middle of nowhere, and all the phone lines are cut. Jill hears a little girl in the basement, so she must rescue her. Which is the undoing of just about everyone.

I don't know how many movies I've seen this in, but what you've got here is another body-jumping movie. People get killed, and the demon (or in this case, a witch) moves into another nearby vessel. The Damned (or Gallows Hill) employs a number of tried and true tricks and tropes, so the whole thing comes off a little cliche.

There were two characters here, where they make it seem like there's a language barrier. Then, surprise, surprise, they speak fluent English after all (one guy, introduced in the first scene, starts speaking it 40 minutes in!). Assuming this is just for the convenience of the plot, but really seemed like a cheap trick.

There are some things I liked about this movie. First of all, it's got a claustrophobic and atmospheric location. Things do heat up as the body count rises, and there is some good gore. This witch knows all your sordid secrets, and it seems everyone here has something horrible to expose. Also, the ending is somewhat unexpected (albeit improbable. I thought the witch said she was strong?).

I would consider The Damned to be a semi-interesting, though convoluted, retread.