Hell House LLC

First of all, this movie isn't bad, it's just not as good as the hundreds of fake/paid reviews says.

The story was decent but a bit slow at the beginning, like every FF movies.

The acting was decent, I seen much worse but in general the actors did a good job.

I really liked the sets. The house was creepy and they had a decent budget for props. I don't recall any CGI effects.

To conclude, if you need a semi decent horror flick to help you fall asleep, this one will do the job.

So I was looking for something to watch and came across Hell House LLC and decided to watch it after checking it's ratings online. I am well aware of the 'found footage' genre that has become a normal horror movie cliché and while I have enjoyed some in the past, a majority of them, I do not like.

Hell House LLC is one of the ones I liked.

The film is part found footage and part documentary mixed into a sort of surreal horror film. The fact that the film takes place in and around a pop-up Halloween haunted house only allows them to use weird and creepy effects without expecting people to suspend belief.

The movie has a decent pace, the actors are your average run of the mill B-Horror cast.

The writing is fine, but it's another one of those films that explain nothing and I really hate that.

Found Footage movies are a hit and miss, more often the shakiness of the camera tends to be a distraction, but there are those instances when the cameras flawed views work for the subject. Hell House LLC has been compared to The Houses October Built as both focus on Commercial Haunted Houses, but Hell House is more similar to Lake Mungo in that multiple video sources are used to create a documentary feel. The setting of Hell House is important as it is an actual commercial Haunted House, so the creepiness of the setting adds to the genuine feel of the events. What makes Hell House stand out is the seemingly mysterious way the horrible events of its fatal opening are presented, making efficient use of Youtube and Cell Phone videos we view the panic of the situation along with the mystery of what exactly is going on. The movie does slowly reveal what did happen but also leaves some mystery for the viewer to ponder. Most reviews of the film agree that Hell House is unique and does not seem too derivative among the dozens of recent found footage films. The only area of the debate centers on the ending; you will either love it or hate depending on how much closure you seek. Overall Hell House LLC is a terrific film, and for its small budget, it compares well with bigger budget films that focus more on FX and less on the plot.

Just when you think the found footage horror film has nowhere left to go, the well now running dry after granddaddy of them all The Blair Witch Project's release in 1999, along comes a low-budget gem like Hell House LLC.

Directed by debut feature length filmmaker Stephen Cognetti, who edited the film over a course of a full calendar year as he worked another full time job, Hell House may on paper seem like a tough sell but due to the films non-reliance on jump scares and instead a focus on subtle build ups and solid character design and growth, Cognetti's film is an effective example of both low-budget filmmaking and the found footage style of horror film's that has been going through a rough time over the last few years.

Setting up a slow build scenario, Cognetti's film draws the audience in as we witness a haunted house crew set-up for a new season of Halloween haunts and scares in a decrepit old hotel building on the outside country surrounds of New York City.

Mixing in talking head interviews with journalists and eye-witnesses of a night of terror and death on the Hell House's opening night, the film feels like a lived in and realistic experience as the hotel premise's true nature begins to be unravelled by the production crew and we the audience begin to understand the horrors that the hotel harbors within its bricks and motor design.

Most impressive for a film of this nature and budget, Hell House has great production values and extremely solid acting turns which makes the haunted house feel alive and real and rare for a film of this ilk, the characters here are ones we grow to care for and are characters that feel cut from the real world, unlike many found footage film's where characters feel unrealistic and most tellingly, uninvolving.

Not everything in Hell House works to the standard it sets, a few plot contrivances and some obvious budget constraints hamper a few scenes and situations but with a focus on the practical (the Hell House is an impressively constructed set-piece for the film) and the stories engaging design, Hell House is an enjoyable and frequently haunting piece of horror filmmaking.

Final Say –

One of recent memories great little horror surprises, Hell House LLC is the newest found footage experience you didn't know you needed and a splendid calling card for its director Stephen Cognetti, a director who quite clearly is an astute student of the genre and a filmmaker to keep a very close eye on.

3 ½ creepy pianist's out of 5

Found footage horror movie set in an abandoned hotel that some enterprising young people hope to turn into an elaborate Halloween haunted house. But on opening night, things go horribly wrong and 15 people end up dead. An investigative journalist sets out to uncover the truth of Hell House.

When Hell House LLC works, it's incredibly effective. There are parts of the film that really creeped me out. If there's one thing I can't stand, it's clowns. So, when dead-looking clown mannequins start moving mysteriously in the night, it's uber-creepy to me.. Throw in a basement with Satanic drawings on the wall and old bibles scattered on the floor and I'm ready to hide until it's all over. The backstory of the hotel and the hotel itself are also pluses for the film. You get a weird, spooky vibe from the building even before anyone sets foot inside it. Finally, I like the fact that Hell House LLC is really two found footage movies in one. I won't spoil anything, but the twist at the end worked on me.

But as my rating would indicate, all is not perfect with Hell House LLC. I have two chief complaints. First, almost every character involved in the haunted house preparation is as annoying as sin. The entire time I was watching, I just hoped Paul and Danny would be among the dead. Second, and more importantly, not a single character in the movie displayed an ounce of common sense. You hear strange things in the night - what do you do? Walk around with a camera and a weak flashlight? Well that's what these people do. Turn on the damn lights! The lights work - use them. And after you've seen strange things that shouldn't happen (like a dead-looking clown moving around), do you get out? Not if you're these lunkheads. The first time I saw some of the happenings they see, I'd be on the first bus out of town. But because the characters in this movie act without an iota of common sense, they're like lambs led to slaughter.

Overall, a real mixed bag. Hell House LLC is creepy enough, but the characters really hurt my enjoyment.

5/10