The Sickhouse

Despite knowing that the film industry will always sacrifice originality (and therefore risk) to make money it still amazes and annoys me that rubbish like this gets made. Can't a producer realise that making an interesting and vaguely original film will likely make more money through positive word of mouth than a bland, boring, seen it all before piece of cable movie sh!t like Sick House. This film was average, listless, un-engaging, dark and unintelligible, with a pointless and unnecessarily confusing twist ending. I'm desperately trying to think of something positive to say about this film and all I can come up with the cinematography and general look of the film was quite interesting, well that is at the few points in the film where it was possible to actually make out what was happening. Another positive point was Gina Philips who turned in a creditable performance.

I won't say this is the best horror film I have ever watched but it is certainly not the worst either. Interesting story line about the plague doctors (who by the way wore masks shaped like bird beaks to keep plague at bay) and an unknown cult. In this day of conspiracies it is reasonable to think it could have happened. It had some really decent gore in it and is an OK way to spend a couple of hours. I must say Gina Phillips is making a career out of making horror films and most of them have been good enough to watch. Like this one. You have to keep an open mind with most horror films now days and this is definitely worth a quick look when you've got nothing else to watch. I bought in the 2 for $10 bin @ the local big name super store so at least I got my money's worth. And the ending was very interesting

Plague doctors, the physicians who treated the sick during the Great Plague of London, wore wide-brimmed black hats, long black overcoats and primitive gas masks in the shape of a bird's beak; in short, they looked bloody freaky.

Horror newcomer Curtis Radclyffe attempts to capitalise on the unsettling nature of these bizarre historical figures by making them the antagonists in his film The Sick House, but fails to realise that having a cool looking killer just isn't enough on its own: a coherent plot, decent acting, competent editing and considered direction doesn't go amiss either.

After a thoroughly confusing pre-credits sequence featuring a whispering child, Radclyffe's film begins proper with the discovery of a sealed chamber beneath a 17th century hospital. Archaeologist Anna (Gina Philips) is keen to find out what is on the inside, but when the site is declared to be a bio-hazard, she is prevented from continuing her dig. So what does this supposedly intelligent scientist do next? Why, break in, of course—a stroke of genius which not only results in an outbreak of the plague, but also the resurrection of a murderous plague doctor. Meanwhile, a car full of joy-riders seek refuge in the hospital after their fun results in a fatal accident. Guess who's going to wish they'd not broken their ASBOs...

Having introduced his raft of thoroughly selfish characters, and established them within a fairly creepy locale, Radclyffe then proceeds to belie his novice status as both a writer and director by boring the pants off his audience with a solid hour and a half of people wandering aimlessly through dark corridors, whilst the shadowy plague doctor randomly appears and disappears in the shadows.

Fluorescent lights flicker on and off to add a little extra ambiance (or in my case, to irritate me even further), none of the supernatural events that occur are ever adequately explained, gimmicky editing and post production trickery makes everything extremely hard to follow, and the whole thing finishes as confusingly as it began, with a child once again whispering some nonsense that might possibly have made some sense had I not given up caring long before.

Well, this was not horrible to say the least. I have seen many movies that are even worse. For a low budget movie it was actually pretty thrilling. It gave you some spooks and jumps. Overall the storyline was a good idea, yet somewhat got lost along the way. The acting was OK. Some of the graphics and stunts were pretty gruesome and cool in a way. The dialog was quick and understandable and kept you enthralled throughout the film. Although, the ending was quite a disappointment and rather abrupt, the movie was overall good. Nothing compared to the old time horror flicks, but still good. Is it worth your money? Maybe... if you're looking for a slightly cheesy horror flick. Otherwise, just watch it online.

We hear about it far too much in the horror genre: a poorly made film with an interesting premise.

Had this shied away from the punk-teen angle (like that of Bava's 'Demons') and headed for straight horror (maybe on the level of 'El Orfanato'), it could've had the chance to be a rather good film. Instead, poor writing, bad direction, seemingly bored actors, and silly camera tricks in exchange for real scares, we're left with yet another forgettable haunted-house picture.

I'd say pass it up and wait for 'The Orphanage' on DVD. Or, if you can't wait, check out 'The Devil's Backbone.'

-AP3-