Death House (2017) User Reviews

What's this film really like? Honest non troll or shill review

[geeklegionofdoom · 3/10 · 8 December 2018]

I saw the Death House Twitter account begging for people to give positive reviews for the movie, as according to them, the 'Trolls' have had a go at it. So i will give this an honest constructive. It is true amateur reviewers will often either give a movie an extreme rating, either 1 or a 10 . Neither of which is particularly helpful . So i'll go through the positives and negatives of what i can contribute to the conversation .

What worked?

• It is fun to spot all the plethora of horror and B-movie actors , some of which only have a brief walk on performance.
• There is one truly stand out scene , where there is a bunch of skinless zombie like creatures, that does look really impressive effects wise.
• Kane Hodder is pretty good in this

What didn't work

• Too concerned with setting up a sequel with Tony Todd's character
• The cinematography is very poor. It's far too dark and under lit, making it impossible to see what is going on sometimes. I appreciate it's taking place in an underground prison, but you have to write your script and film it so people can see what is going on. Besides, no one is watching this for realism.
• With the exception of the scene mentioned above. The effects are very poor. Horrible green scree, poor cgi after effects and even other practical effects look bad
• The acting isn't good , our two lead protagonists are wooden, and even veteran actors like Dee Wallace turn in a poor performance. It seem like the director has done one take, and just accepted it.
• The biggest issue is the story and script . It is all over the place , it simply doesn't make a lick of sense from beginning to end . Right from the start where it's never fully explained who and why our two lead characters are and what they are doing there at the beginning of the movie, right up until the end with the quite frankly embarrassing 'Five evils ' scene. The narrative structure is so poor, confusing and convoluted

Ultimately this movie should have invested it's finances behind the camera rather than being so concerned with all the cameos , which ends up being really a waste of the actors time .

A real waste of an opportunity and concept . Although i don't like this typical internet behavior of it's either a 1 or a 10 . I think it's equally deplorable for a film company to essentially coerce the weak minded to giving overly favorable reviews.

So close and yet so far...

[PukaEntProds · 3/10 · 8 November 2018]

When this film was first floated out into the universe, the names attached were Doug Bradley, Robert Englund, Gunnar Hansen, and Kane Hodder as the Four Horsemen (what I guess became the 5 Evils) and had Sid Haig in the role that went to Kane Hodder. Sprinkle in some Tony Todd, Bill Moseley, Dee Wallace...and you get the "Expendables of Horror". Had that been the outcome, it would have been, potentially, one of the best popcorn horror films ever. The eventual outcome is far less than that.

The Good - Sid Haig, Tony Todd, and Bill Moseley, while limited in screen time, are great. Haig especially gives a typically manical and hilarious couple of minutes (though his actual purpose in the plot isn't clear, more like he was randomly thrust into the film). Todd is especially creepy, though he too seems to have little to do with the story. And Moseley, while stuck with a ridiculous monologue at the conclusion, makes the best of it (and despite being a former Nazi, has no hint of a German accent?). Hodder is also fairly effective in his role, though he's not given much to work with, as most of his dialogue is poorly written. Same with most of the other genre cameos...the characters are simply not written well enough to have any real impact.

The Bad - The story and production are pretty poor. I don't want to disparage Harrison Smith's abilities as, given the developmental hell this film allegedly went through, I would imagine a fair few of the shortcomings of the film could be laid at the feet of demands for reduction in the budget and running time. Typically, with films like this, they get cut back at the 11th hour and a lot of what was put on the page get's left unfilmed. I'm hoping this is the case here as the story is pretty disjointed and there are a LOT of elements in the film that felt like there should have been a greater explanation (ie the 9 animated corpses randomly trapped in a cell, the inmate eating a dismembered corpse, a very random creature scooting across the screen when the inmates are in the bowels of the prison, and the young boy who stuffs a guard with an EMP device, to name a few). There are a ton of plot holes (how does a maximum security prison housing supernatural inmates NOT have a generator backup?) and random other bits and bobs that don't really fit together to make a coherent plot. And when our main characters need to get from an upper level to the basement to meet the 5 evils? An extremely fast zip down an elevator cable by HAND (don't worry, they wrapped it with gauze) while firing their guns randomly and apparently killing inmates? Okie dokie.

The film composition is either poor or EXTREMELY poor and makes for difficult viewing at the best of times. The lighting is dismal. During the initial prison break, you can't tell who is who and what's even happening. The digital FX are also extremely poor (at one point in the basement, the shot moves slightly but the fog on the ground doesn't!). The sets were fine, if not extremely disjointed for a state-of-the-art facility.

The two protagonists again have very little to work with but they are supremely flat in the whole proceedings and, again, have questionable plot points (they randomly shower together, presumably to put Courtney Palm's breasts on display, but share no intimacy, nor have ever done so; no judgement, it's just a weird thing to have happen). They are given a bit of a twist at the end that could perhaps explain their behaviour, but, again, there is not enough fleshing out of the characters to give us a real understanding of them.

The most egregious irritation, however, is that, when we finally reach the 5 Evils...nothing happens. Nothing. As above, Bill Moseley has a lengthy monologue about good and evil and the others chime in occasionally, I guess adding to the tenet of said speech? In the end, they perform no tasks besides looking like futuristic warriors, another thing that makes little sense.

I feel like what most horror fans would have liked to have seen was a straightforward bloodbath without a lot of the dalliances that fell short of their target. I think we would have liked to have seen the 5 Evils unleashed upon the rioting prisoners and dispatched in ways specific to their own proclivities, and ending with their being lost out in the world to continue their reigns of terror. Instead, we are left with a disappointing mish mash of plot lines, unrealised back stories, and a supremely unsatisfying conclusion. I hope Harrison Smith gets a chance to make a film on his own terms as I firmly believe this wasn't the case here. Maybe then he can give us some horror worth viewing.

Inept in just about every way you can think of

[Wizard-8 · 2/10 · 7 May 2019]

Don't be fooled by the fact that the makers of this movie managed to round up an impressive-sounding list of beloved B movie actors - most of these players have very little screen time. Actually, that is one of the least of the problems of this absolutely terrible movie. The main problem with the movie is that it makes very little sense. The story has something to do with a special prison that is (I think) conditioning inmates in a special way, but I couldn't describe the movie much more than that. Things seem to be happening at random and without proper explanation throughout, as if ideas from many completely different movies were being combined into this screenplay. To add insult to injury, it takes over 40% of the running time before the crisis starts to unfold, and when this does happen, the movie's pacing doesn't increase much more than before. And who thought it was a good idea for almost all of the second half of the movie to be filmed in almost complete darkness? The only reason why I am not giving this travesty the lowest possible rating is that some of the gore effects are pretty impressive. But even if you are a die hard gorehound, you'll feel ripped off even if you see the movie for free on Netflix as I did.

It's THAT bad.

[corytrevorson · 1/10 · 8 November 2018]

I really wanted to like this one, being a fan of all the horror legends it contained. It started off like it had a plot, but then the director said "Nevermind, I'll just do whatever.", and the movie collapsed in on itself.

Horrible, just horrible.

[kerr50 · 1/10 · 6 May 2019]

Not much to like about this movie ... it made no sense and the acting was really bad.

Bored To Death House!

[gwnightscream · 2/10 · 16 May 2019]

I was expecting something a little decent, especially when you got horror icons like Dee Wallace (The Howling), Kane Hodder (Jason X), Tony Todd (Candyman), Felissa Rose (Sleepaway Camp) and Barbara Crampton (Re-Animator). I won't even bother with the plot because I quit watching this after the first 15 minutes because it was boring and sucked. There's some bloody/gory make-up effects, but that's it.

Huh????????

[alienautopsy414 · 2/10 · 12 May 2019]

I love super bad horror movies. But not this bad. Sid Haig, Michael Berryman, Gunnar Hansen, Kane Hodder, Dee Wallace, Barbara Crampton, R.A Mihalov, Tony Todd, Bill Mosely.....wasn't enough to save this drivel. Saying it made zero sense is giving it too much credit. If you like lots of gore and boobies and 80's Moog synth sound F/X, then by all means...sit through this.

Looks like somebody has been paying for reviews...

[oriongrant-185-987588 · 2/10 · 27 April 2018]

The reviews on here are a little odd... anyway, here is a real one.

This film blows.

How did this ever get released?

[gavinandersonroberts-137-689084 · 1/10 · 26 December 2019]

Words fail me...

I'm a huge horror fan and love low budget, indie stuff just as much as mainstream movies but there is simply nothing positive to say about this catastrophic mess.

The premise is so simple and soooo enticing but the end result is just an incoherent disaster. How could ANYONE consider this to be a finished product?

It makes no sense, characters drift in and out, scenes appear out of sequence, nothing is ever explained ... it's just a cluster of epic proportions.

The actors themselves must have watched the final cut and wondered how the hell this came together.

I am horrified that I spent money on the DVD and you can be certain it's going straight into the bin now.

Insulting

[riffmaster7 · 3/10 · 25 November 2018]

I don't know what's worse... the fact that this movie is an absolute mess or that I wanted to love it and it left me with blue balls. The lighting is awful, the editing was done by a blind and deaf person, and the ending makes zero sense. The only reason it got as many stars as it did was because they did manage to corral a lot of horror legends into one place.

How did this win any awards?

[wulfthorn · 1 June 2019]

Lots of horror icons, thought it would be a good movie but this just kept getting worse. Don't waste your time.

Reunited and it feels so deadly.

[shanemoose-88715 · 8/10 · 8 December 2018]

While others may call this movie the "Expendables of Horror", I consider it a silly and dark (figuratively and literally) love letter to the fans. If you want an obviously low-budget crossover with some of your favorite Horror movie actors in a ridiculous premise, you got it! Just remind yourself that this is low-budget so don't go in this film expecting something around the lines of 'Crimson Peak', in terms of scope or effects. This is a fun time for the Horror fans, no one else.

Not as bad as other reviews suggest

[jacksongrant-74930 · 6/10 · 9 May 2019]

Look, it isn't great. I expected a lot more considering the horror alumni cast. However, the other reviews suggest the movie is unwatchable, and that is not the case. The main issue with this movie is editing. It starts off a little slow but develops nicely

The expendables 3 of horror

[chstad27 · 1/10 · 17 September 2018]

I was very excited to see this movies once I heard about it years ago. I know it went thru developmental hell but I had hope since I'm a huge horror fan and it has an allstar cast but unfortunately its One of the worst horror movies ever made they should've went with the original idea that Bruce Campbell created. Looks like it was made in a warehouse and filmed with a android phone camera. The gore is so cheesy its laughable. Dont waste your money you will regret it I wish somebody warned me about so you're welcome.

My god!!!!

[mbruschett · 1/10 · 17 November 2018]

How could all those horror icons do this to themselves... If they needed money it would be less embarrassing to stand on a street corner begging for change...

Zero Star Rating if I could!

[trashley22 · 1/10 · 10 January 2019]

Had to write a review after I saw the ones giving it a 10/10 - were they getting paid to write those reviews or what?! The story is practically non existent, we were left asking each other lots of questions about what actually went on at the end. What is the story?! I can deal with low budget, cheap looking movies if there's a story you can get behind, or good acting, but not here. So it looks bad, no story continuity, and the 2 mains (Courtney & Cody) were such bad actors. If I could give it zero stars I would... so I guess the one star I gave it is for using Eastern State Penn in Philly as a shooting location, that place is cool. My husband was excited to see the horror cast line up for this film, that's why he bought it the day it canevout, but even he feels it's a total let down. He agrees on the 1/10 rating but states his 1 star goes for the horror legends cast. Save your time and watch something else.

B. Harrison Smith clearly was overreaching here..

[bradleyjamesconnor82 · 1/10 · 24 November 2018]

I don't know what happened, i understand there were probably budgetary restrains and such, but damn, just damn. Everything came off badly, the acting, the lighting, the special effects, the plot and on.. worse of all, could perhaps be that ending, wtf was that?

I really hope this wasn't what Gunnar Hansen had in mind, when he came up with the idea originally? And why were some of those actors even in the cast, just so they would have more names to put in the credits? Because they did absolutely nothing at all in the movie.

Clearly B. Harrison Smith was overreaching, and had no right to try to make the Expendables of Horror, especially as only his third full feature movie. Maybe wait until you can actually direct, before trying something like this?

The worst horror movie I've ever seen.

[robertvardaro-99251 · 1/10 · 1 August 2018]

The people giving this a 10/10 clearly are by people who have not seen this before, I saw this at a convention and it was one of the worst films I've ever seen. That Cody Longo guy cannot act at all who's the one of the main characters.

The director clearly does not know what he's doing. The lighting is garbage and you can barely see anything, the director does not know how to build any sort of tension.

I wouldn't even suggest you renting this on Redbox. For the love of God please no one work with the director again it was embarrassing to watch. (I honestly was embarrassed that I was in a room watching a garbage film like this wasting my time)

WTF?

[Randall-Flagg01 · 2/10 · 8 November 2018]

What did I just watch? Was the film maker on crack? The story made no sense, the acting was horrible, the direction was a joke, etc. Avoid this garbage at all costs! Seriously, the people that put this out should be ashamed.

Honest Review (for a change)

[cvoris-63007 · 1/10 · 6 November 2018]

This movie was beyond disappointing. For all the hype, it was edited poorly, filmed poorly, directed poorly, and acted poorly. If you would like to see an amazing idea (someone referred to this as The Expendables of horror) executed in a way that should make these horror stars ashamed to have their names attached to it, then this movie is for you. Otherwise? Picture in your mind what this movie could have been. Even if you picture a dumpster fire, you'll be less disappointed than actually watching it.

Not good at all

[nogcfan619 · 1/10 · 19 March 2019]

When it comes to films i enjoy just about everything i watch this however was a let down for me such a shame because the cast has some legends in it definitely wont watch again.

This movie hasn't even been released yet...

[duckboy-94171 · 26 August 2018]

Death house says original release was September 2017 & February 2018 , B.S. it's now August 26th & nothing so any reviews of this movie are completely FAKE !!! it's now scheduled for release November 2018 for streaming and DVD release for end of December, if I were a betting person id say release would be somewhere around never & when hell freezes over...

Action Packed Thrill Ride

[anthonythurber-89706 · 10/10 · 2 March 2018]

With a cast that includes Kane Hodder, Tony Tood, Sid Haig, Dee Wallace, Barbara Crampton, Bill Mosley, Michael Berryman, Felissa Rose, Lloyd Kaufman, Sean Whalen and a host of others, I was not going to miss this film for anything. My first reaction after seeing this film was that it reminded me of Adam Green's Hatchet as I was wowed by that film when it first theaters for its action. "Death House" gave me that same feel as I like this a lot. The action has this level of kick ass intensity from start to finish as "Hatchet" did.



What makes this film very good was B. Harrison Smith direction. He does a very good job with the way he handles everything. From the action to how he directs this, everything is done in a way that it's a love letter to the hardcore horror fan. It has a mixture of old school gore imagery and action packed sequences drives the film's intensity to the point that it doesn't stop until its conclusion. The other thing I liked about this was it didn't feel like your random horror film with cameos. There were plenty here but you almost forget about them because Smith does a very good job directing his main cast. He makes sure that his main cast including Courtney Palm, Cody Longo and Kane Hodder make their performances entertaining to help make the focus of the film be about the story and not all of these cameos. It made me interested in their characters and the action that takes place.



The other thing that I liked about this was the screenplay. Harrison Smith does a very job making sure the screenplay had an old school horror feel to it while also making feel action packed. One of the things that he does very well is to develop everything. I liked how he takes his time by developing the backstory of the death house and what its main purpose is. By doing that, its makes the location feel like another character which is needed here because the film's title is Death House. I also liked how there are several things in the screenplay that pay homage to other notable horror films. It's done in a way that it doesn't take away from the story as these homage fit into the film's dark and twisted world. It made this film fun as I was into everything from start to finish.



This is definitely one horror film you should be checking when released into theaters as this one of the most fun times I've had watching a horror film in a while. "Death House" is an action packed adrenalized thrill ride that that don't stop.

Hell isn't a word. It is a sentence.

[nogodnomasters · 6/10 · 14 January 2019]

The Death House was founded in 1954. It is a high-security high tech prison that experiments with the inmates by wiping memories and installing new ones. They use something called "Milk of Amnesia" to add to the bad pun list. We get introduced to the facility with two new hires taking a tour, folks that don't seem to have memories.

Level nine of the prison hold 5 prisoners known as "The Five Evils." One female prisoner with a chainsaw has the nickname "Leather Lace." The prison loses power and guards with automatic weapons are no match for unarmed mostly shirtless inmates. Kane Hodder leads a group of inmates. Like Jason, he can't die.

The film's plot was strained. A more conventional asylum could have worked better with characters that pay better homage to older films. The strength of this feature is that the cast is a who's who of slasher horror films. Even minor and uncredited roles include major slasher stars and scream queens such as Sarah French and Danny Trejo. Many of the Troma crowd are here also. I wish they had a better script.

Guide: F-word. Nudity (Cortney Palm, Sarah French + a couple more)

What the hell did I just watch???

[stacyl-72602 · 1/10 · 8 May 2019]

Who did this? Who gave this the green light? I have seen some pretty horrible horror movies, but none have ever been this bad. This abomination is completely disrespectful to the genre and the horror actors that were in this. This was supposed to be Horrors version of the expendables, with all the awesome horror actors in it. What the hell happened? The plot was horrible, the acting was horrible, the damn graphics were horrible. I actually sat through the whole thing, mainly because of Kane Hodder and Bill Moseley, I kept hoping it would get better. It didn't, it's completely disappointing. Don't waste your time watching this.