It's really not as bad considering the limitations and money these guys
had. I've seen a lot worse efforts. They obviously spent more on
certain stories than others which is to be expected. The connecting
scenes were the worst and probably the most rushed. The sound,
direction and acting leaves a lot to be desired in these segments but
I'm presuming all the money and time went into the stories which I
would imagine were filmed first. I admire independent film makers
making a go of it with very limited options and this one gets a decent
amount right albeit not on a high level.
The first story is the best and was genuinely quite creepy and had a
good sense of suspense and scare moments. It's wasn't a new story, but
executed quite well considering. The actors were fine, apart from when
she had to act a bit weird because she chose to overdo the
oddness..especially with her eye-line, which when you consider they
were newlyweds and knew each other pretty well, her behaviour at those
moments would ring enormous alarm bells with me! It would have worked
better if she was more subtle with it. The ending was a bit naff, but
the substance of the overall story well executed.
The second story is an well worn story of revenge, but it definitely
had it's moments, especially when the 'victim' meets the bully in
'heavy breathing silence' before the act of violence. In these sorts of
stories, for it to succeed you need to create a certain amount of
understanding with the revenger and I thought, in the short amount of
time to convey this, the writers did an OK job. The Director gave it
space and pace at the right moments. The scene with the parents
watching the cartoon was very good, since it encapsulated everything
about them in a very short space of time and you kind of realised what
sort of life he'd had with them very quickly.
The third story was the weakest and I imagine they might have shot it
in one day! Slap hazard and not particularly well thought out and also
unrealistic. You can tell this by the way she grabbed the knife...I
mean really? Also, the decisions made by certain characters were 101 of
how NOT to do things when considering a discerning viewer audience.
The connection to all this was the hotel. I understand the title was
changed to Hotel Hell which isn't really what it is about...it's not
about the hotel...the hotel is just a place used a conduit for the main
character to act as a catalyst for the stories. You could argue that
that is why it is a hotel of hell...because of the telling of the
stories..but it just doesn't quite work. Yes, the final eiplogue to the
anthology is based there but it's still not about the hotel...it's
about the characters. The final scenes are disappointing and the fact
the lead actor is in the final story..and very easily recognisable from
that story means there isn't any surprise and it's all rather obvious.
Also...bit plot hole...the videographer gets attacked by the
clown....which goes against what the second story is about. It's about
revenge against those who have done him wrong. The videographer hasn't
done anything to him,doesn't even know him, so it doesn't really make
sense. It's feels like a cheap afterthought to finish the movie.
However...really not that bad an effort when all things are considered.
The Damned Thing
2014
Action / Horror / Thriller
The Damned Thing
2014
Action / Horror / Thriller
Plot summary
Three tales of horror are told from the narration of paranormal investigator Eddie Osborne to his newly hired videographer, as they document an abandoned hotel with supernatural occurrences.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
April 18, 2016 at 02:43 PM
Director
Top cast
Tech specs
720p.BLU 1080p.BLUMovie Reviews
A good effort on a low budget
Horror anthology dud
I saw this dud on Amazon Prime under the title HOTEL HELL. It's a patience-testing horror anthology containing three stories told via a paranormal investigator. The medium is the found footage format and a creepy clown which appears in one of the segments makes it onto the video cover. The first story is another boring spin on the haunted house genre, PARANORMAL ACTIVITY style; the second story is about a psycho who dresses up as a clown to revenge himself on some former bullies; the third story is about a TV crew faking some Bigfoot evidence running afoul of real evil. The running time is interminable and the intermingling stories are exceptionally poor. The very bad production values make this a struggle to sit through.
They Should Have Stuck w/ The Damned Thing as the Title...
This movie is actually titled "Hotel Hell"- which doesn't make much sense. I am confused as to why it takes place at a hotel when none of the stories have anything to do with that hotel in which he hires a videographer to tour with him. I liked the twist at the end, but I am so confused as I really thought that when he was discussing the rooms that the 3 anthologies would actually be related to the hotel in some way shape or form...It was a solid campy B-movie horror flick, so please do not go into it assuming that it will have any deep meaning or be a work of art. I just enjoyed it for what it was and, if you decide to watch it, go into it with little to no expectations.