It has been a long time since I watched a truly horrendous movie. This wasn't horrendous, but it was close. I have followed the Hell House LLC universe since the first movie in 2015. That was a found footage film, which I am a huge fan of. That movie scared the crap outta me! I won't lie, I slept with the lights on that night. Then came the second film, Hell House LLC: The Abaddon Hotel, which gave you some background into the building and why it was as messed up as it was. Again, creepy AF!! It did have some eye rolling moments, as most sequels do, but overall, it was another great installment in the found footage Hell House LLC universe. Now we come to Hell House LLC: Lake of Fire. Odd, but still had some good scares. It also incorporated the tragedy from the first movie, so it kind of tied them together. It also took place IN THE ABADDON HOTEL! Key point there. If you start a franchise about a haunted place, it should feature in the movies that follow, right? In some way at least. The fourth instalment came in the form of Hell House LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor. This one incorporated found footage, but also regular film as well. So, you got a look at what was happening beyond the camera. A first for this franchise, but I felt it worked. It was scary enough that I jumped a few times. I was not overly disappointed. Strange, I know, but hey, I was with my love, so that kind of softens me a little. But only a little. Don't get too excited.
When I saw this movie on Prime the other night, I was thrilled. I had, up to this point, had a good experience with the Hell House LLC franchise, so I went into this movie with high expectations and hopes. Sadly, that was my first mistake. It makes use of one character from Lake of Fire, a reporter, who mysteriously survives the massacre. Plot hole number one. It is alluded through all the other movies that she disappeared and/or died. Guess not. They do bring in the clowns from the first, which you find out have a connection to the hotel. Those guys are creepy as all get out. Best prop they have! I can see why they have used them in all five films. They ramp up the spook factor to an immediate ten! So, they get points for that. But that is all.
This instalment doesn't use found footage at all. That is what made the original movie, and the two after it, so successful. They were able to use the fact that the viewer couldn't see what was happening beyond the scope of the camera that the actor was holding, or the security cameras that were set up, or any other stationary camera. It added to the suspense. When you remove that factor, you now have to rely on the quality of acting from your cast. That fell flat on its face. Nothing made sense. The actors gave lackluster performances. Where they could have redeemed themselves was with Bobby Hopewell, but no, he dies fairly early. Max was another character who could have had an interesting story arc, but they dropped the ball on that, too. He was just some poor shmuck who happened to look into the windows of the hotel.
Now here is where I had my biggest problem. In the original, the hotel is on a street in town, or so it looks like. It is on a fairly busy street. Not a country road. It has neighbours, buildings around it, a sidewalk, and a parking lot. The "land" that they say the Abaddon is, in this movie, is just an open field down a deserted country road! That's not where the hotel was. That was a huge inconsistency that drove me nuts when I saw it.
So, the big plot in this movie is that those who killed the Carmichael girl must pay for their actions. Revenge is always a good motive for a movie, especially a paranormal one. But it was just the descendants of the people in the truck that killed her. The main protagonist has absolutely no connection to anyone in that truck! She is one of the twin children of some minor character that is mentioned in an earlier film, named Beverly. And apparently, she has some kind of power. Which is mentioned, sort of, at the end of the movie.
AND WHO THE HELL IS MITCHEL!
This was supposed to be the last instalment in the franchise. A solid franchise, until this steaming pile of crap.
It was heavy on the lore, it dumped a bunch of information on the viewer, created back stories that didn't need to happen, to explain deaths that didn't really need explaining, and achieved none of the suspense or scare of any of the other films.
I said earlier that the clown was a great prop, and it is, if it is used properly. Each time we saw him, which was often, and in my opinion, overused, he was well lit, in a well lit scene, which took a lot of the scare away from him.
To say I was disappointed in this apparently final piece is an understatement. I was left with more questions, some definite WTF moments, and a bad taste in my mouth, but that could have been rancid butter on my popcorn.
I would not recommend this movie even if they paid me to.
Half a star, and I am being generous because it did have the clown.
Cya at the next pile of crap I have to watch
Sarcastically Cynical Sally