Portal

Yes, this really is a "B film". The acting is B level. The special effects are sparse and low budget. The script is funny enough to keep you watching. This script is definitely self-aware that it is what it is and they just roll with it. The weakest point of the film is definitely it's plot. The plot has good bones but fails wildly and hilariously in execution. It's definitely a movie that is watchable but not for any good reasons, just laughable ones.

I feel like this movie could have been good. But it's short run time and lack of ability to handle a low budget that kills it. I tried so hard not to laugh at the end but you just have to. It's that kind of movie.

Well normally a 3 star rates movie is just that, but in this case it surprised me, bit wierd bit strange but an enjoyable movie.

The very idea of "ghost-hunting" is such utter nonsense that I automatically have a hard time engaging with any media that plays with the notion. Like exorcism flicks, however - if a slightly different spin is put on the concept, that can make all the difference and pique my interest. Though it's not entirely successfully, I'm so very pleased that 'Portal' takes a bit different of a tack that makes this pretty fun.

Overt tropes and leaps in logic. Dialogue and story beats that are alternate between ham-handed, and sardonic and intelligent. Music cues aiding scene arrangement to build tension and release it with cheeky, fun inversion of expectations. Unnecessary shots of "creepy" children's toys and innocuous house features. This is all done with clear intention to supply the great punch of 'Portal': not horror, but comedy. The film pointedly mocks ghost-hunting with wry, stone-faced satire that pokes at every unconvincing scrap of hokum the genre dallies with - both TV shows, and movies that self-seriously operate in the same space. This is especially true in the first half, which one wishes were more representative of the picture as a whole: in the latter half, 'Portal' turns marginally more serious to emphasize plot, and in so doing the film becomes a little uneven.

Still, despite being a tad inconsistent - and maybe a little too self-aware at points - this is so much fun! The filming location is choice. I think the special effects look good, and other details like hair, makeup, and wardrobe are given fine consideration. I enjoy Corey Allen Jackson's score, both in and of itself and for the boost it gives to the cutting tone of the film. And I think the whole cast is super, with special commendations for Heather Langenkamp and Gregory Zaragoza - demonstrating poise and force of personality as level-headed interlopers who find the "ghost-hunters" in dire straits - and for Najarra Townsend, who illustrates (within the limits the screenplay gives her) range, physicality, and nuance that I know she carries so well.

It may seem like a small thing, but I must deduct another point of regard from the film's success for the unsightly use of neo-Nazi paraphernalia to adorn Zaragoza the first time we meet his character. I assume that that choice was fiercely ironic, but it's unwelcome one way or the other. It's an unfortunate inclusion that plants a solid red flag and somewhat sullies my enthusiasm.

Yet whatever its deficiences, I am pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this. The slant it takes will turn off some viewers, nevermind that its approach to the humor is so dry and earnest that it could easily be mistaken for a serious horror flick executed poorly. But if one is willing and able to engage with the movie for what it is, 'Portal' is a wonderfully funny, entertainment lampoon of one of the most dubious sides of the horror genre. Definitely worth checking out if you come across it!

With the cast, I was hoping this film would be, at the very least, decent. It was not. The storyline is whack. It's actually really pretty bad. It's funny though because I get the feeling all the actors thought they were making a gem. It's not. It's better left unwatched or immediately forgotten.

So, directing solid, acting jolly good, dialogue/script spot on, nice bit of humour taking the mick out of the genre, all things required to make a very good movie. However, well nothing actually happens, no jumps, no gore, no blood thirsty demonic creature vowing to gut you etc. You just wish the budget could have been stretched just that little bit more to allow some sfx. If it wasn't for the positives mentioned you'd be looking at a movie with a score of 3/10, pity, but I will look for further work by the director in the future.