Ghost House (2017) User Reviews

Not Very Good

[nebk · 4/10 · 28 August 2017]

Ghost House is a generic horror film in which an American couple (Jim & Julie) travel to Thailand on holiday. During the sight-seeing and partying they are tricked into visiting a forest where ghost houses are kept. These are miniature structures said to be inhabited by spirits. If the house is disturbed or desecrated the spirit will inhibit the offenders body and consume their soul. Julie is tricked into taking something from the ghost house and is possessed by a vengeful jealous spirit and Jim finds out that the only way to free her is to pass the curse to someone else as was done to Julie.

Overall the acting is fairly decent and there are some nice shots of Thailand. The effects are OK and so is the directing, but the story is somewhat slow moving and the movie which is about 80 or so minutes seems much longer. Some of the decisions the main characters make also seem illogical and this brings the rating of the movie down e.g. Letting complete strangers take them into the rural areas. The fact that there are movies like The Ring, Shutter, The Grudge, The Forest and many, many others also make the movie very predictable and formulaic at times. An example is passing the curse on like they do with the video tape in The Ring and Ring 2. The end result is therefore neither exciting nor really worth watching.

Not THAT bad

[rupert-ian · 6/10 · 26 January 2018]

This really wasn't bad. I've seen way worse when picking random Netflix horror movies.

The boyfriend was annoying, but the rest of the acting wasn't bad. There were a few good jump scares.

Nothing new here as far as the "Ghost attaches itself to person and friends must find out how to banish it" story. Instead of a video tape here, we have "Ghost Houses".

I was entertained on a night where I couldn't find anything else to watch.

Decent horror by numbers.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 6/10 · 10 September 2018]

Ghost House is worth a watch, it's a decent horror, with a few good moments, some decent scares, and it's well acted.

My criticisms would come from the fact that it contains virtually every single horror cliche in existence. We have the wise woman, the long haired female ghost, an English villain, arched backs, a ceremony, literally everything you would expect to see in a horror film is on show here.

Despite all that though, it is still a good watch, the beginning is very atmospheric, and the way in which the young couple are manipated into trouble is very well done.

It's unsurprising, but decent. 6/10

An Average And Predictable Mess Of A Film

[neener3707 · 3/10 · 16 January 2018]

The film starts off moderately ok with a couple vacationing in Thailand who visit an ancient burial site where they are attacked by an evil spirit that follows them throughout the vacation. The film then spirals into a mess of cliches, bad acting, predictable jump scares, and a story that does not hold your attention. The story becomes dull and uninteresting within 15 minutes of the opening, an opening that crams too much information into it, making questions one would have about the story answered already, leaving the story nearly non-existent.

The jump scares are almost all the same. Girl is alone, ghost suddenly appears, girl freaks out. It may work the first few times, but you end up knowing what the scare is going to be before it happens. While the ghost from a distance could be considered by some as scary, up close it is not. The make-up job on the ghost is so poorly done, it renders the tensions useless and takes you out of the moment. The writing is also painfully dull, including characters with barely one dimension as well as conversations that leave you waiting for it to be over so the next scare will come.

In short, if you are a horror veteran, skip it. If not and you want some cheap scares, go for it.

Awful.

[votejemma · 2/10 · 10 December 2018]

I'd just like to know how much they paid GoGo after all this. Endless rescue trips, family medicine, travels to desolate parts of the country. Bloke deserves thousands of pounds at least.

Could have been better!

[ScottDWhalen · 4/10 · 4 December 2018]

Meh another possession "hand me down" type of movie, or sacrifice to get rid of it. 1 or so parts were predictable, but honestly its just a movie to watch nothing really unexpected. This could have been a lot better, but it is what it is cause movie makers now a days that make "scary" movies SUCK AT IT!

Nicely Shot, Good Acting

[twelve-house-books · 7/10 · 21 October 2020]

This is really a philosophical review. First, for the positives. The acting is good, the story is easy to follow, and the photography is well-done. There are some genuine scares here, and overall the film reminds me of a non-comedic version of Drag Me To Hell (a Horror/Comedy, 2009). The problem I have with this story is that a "good witch" is eventually called upon to defeat an evil entity, but in reality that is always only a ruse since a house divided against itself cannot stand. "Good witchcraft" and "bad witchcraft" are only two sides of the same coin, and can only be trounced by a person walking in the Light of Jesus the Anointed. So the girl is saved from the unclean spirit of the burned woman, but her finance loses a finger--and what happens to her when the story is over? She's now left open to entities all over the world--yes, even in Walmart--unless she makes things right with the Supreme God and his/her love for us all. So, well scripted, acted, and shot--but poorly based on any workable philosophy.

Endlessly dull.

[FilmnTV · 2/10 · 2 September 2017]

An entire movie based on scary makeup. The same thing happens over and over: girl left alone, has vision of scary Asian lady, screams, boyfriend comes running. Aaaaand one more time! Felt like a miniseries. This could have been a 10m short though it still wouldn't be original. It's so boring you'll want to hit something.

Decent Ghost Story With Many Scares!!

[rham-78302 · 7/10 · 2 December 2020]

This is among the better lower budget supernatural movies out there, many are not so great - I've watched nearly all of them out there. The story is good! An American couple visiting Thailand get unwanted attention from a vengeful spirit. Plenty of good "Gotcha" moments if you like to jump! The script could be a little better but it's not bad, actors did their best with what they had. This movie is definitely worth a watch if you like scary ghost stories! Don't believe the snobs who wrote some bad reviews, for lower budget scary movies, this one is a lot of fun - great ending. There's a few sexually explicit scenes in case you have younger kids. Check this movie out!

Amateur night

[maxvespertine · 1/10 · 12 September 2017]

20 min into the movie and I was hoping ghosts kill everyone involved with this project, starting with producers, writers and director. I don't know what species they belong to, because the behavior that they are trying to describe trough characters is far from normal human behavior. Not even sure is it flawed acting or bad writing, but their actions and interactions just do not seem natural nor human.

Poor acting all around, especially from Russell Geoffrey Banks, who sounds like he was prompted for every single syllable he said during the movie. Hard to keep a blind eye to so much lapses, even harder to swallow such degree of amateurism. Don't even bother.

A Step Way Above the Rest!

[dcarsonhagy · 8/10 · 19 August 2017]

A couple (Jim and Julie) arrive in Thailand for a relaxing vacation. They immediately meet their "tour guide," a taxi driver named Gogo. He agrees to be their guide and take them anywhere they want to go while visiting. Upon entering their hotel, Julie notices a small structure and is immediately curious. It is explained to her the structure is a "ghost house" (spirit house) and is there so spirits can be kept at bay. Little does this couple know they are about to become part of Thailand's hushed paranormal history.

"Ghost House" is a step way above most of its competitors in this genre. I found the cinematography, direction, and effects excellent. The makeups are well above what is usually found in movies of this genre. Scout Taylor-Compton (Laurie Strode in Rob Zombie's remake of Halloween 2) plays Julie. I will say one thing: NOBODY can scream like her! James Landry Hebert plays Jim, Julie's boyfriend. He soon realizes he is in just as much danger as she is.

The director knew what he was doing, that's for sure. He managed to give you just enough jump scares at the right time, while still managing to fool you into thinking you'll know when the next one is coming.

Rated "R" for violence, language, and sexual situations, if you want a good scare, check into the "Ghost House."

Follows the the template of Asian horror with some success...Worth a watch

[stylegamer · 7/10 · 27 August 2017]

We have seen the typical horror movie from Hollywood. Jump scares haunted mansion and the usual dark scene in the basement. First of all, this is not the standard template Hollywood horror we are used to. Contrary to the title, nothing happens in a haunted house but everything is a wild goose chase to get rid of a curse.

Th movie is not a poorly made remake of any Asian stuff either. It's a Hollywood movie which happens in Asia, follows the Asian horror template closely and mixes a pseudo type adventure film with "National Geographic's Banged up Abroad" cum Indian Jones metaphor, with reference to a couple trapped in a foreign country having a problem with something they unknowingly messed with. The movie combines the usual jump scares of Hollywood, an ugly old ghost and ritual ceremonies, commonly seen in Asian horror. The acting performances are decent for the most parts. The plot flows smoothly for a good execution. However, the film works better in an adventure "Indiana Jones" type of film than horror.

One of my main gripes about the movie is that the jump scares could have been better presented in a more scarier way, which of course is my own subjective opinion.Instead, it follows a generic method that has been used umpteen times in movies in the genre.However, there is enough suspense to keep u at the edge of your seat with the usual "what will happen next?" question. Watchable if u can overlook the horror elements and treat it as and adventure film

What a piece of crap! Really Actors, Plot, Effects all just awful..

[junkmail-571-286965 · 1/10 · 21 September 2017]

Why would anyone with a little respect of the audience dare to create this piece of crap, after just watching 5 minutes, I already knew this is a awful movie, but sadly if I start watching a movie I have to see it through. Well my first impression was not just right, it also was way to optimistic!! From Beginning to end this movie has nothing really nothing, OK the only thing good about this movie are some nice landscapes of Thailand but that's already it.

PLEASE DON'T SPEND YOUR TIME WATCHING THIS MOVIE, I CAN TELL YOU ALREADY NOW HOW THIS WILL END, SPOILER ALERT!

YOU WILL BE CURSED WITH BAD ACTING, BAD PLOT AND A BORING BAD ENDING!!

Terrible

[dene477 · 2/10 · 4 September 2017]

This movie has all the horror cliche's, there's nothing new here and every time I see a sex scene in a film which plays no part in the plot, I KNOW its written and directed by men who want to see boobies. A lot of what the characters do don't make sense, I can't even believe this got past producers let alone got funding! Everything is so generic and been done before and it took 6 writers to do it! The only reason this even gets a 2 is the acting is decent. Do not waste your time with this movie as it moves along at a snails pace and never really picks up. Who funds these movies?

seemed OK at start

[keko922-2 · 2/10 · 3 September 2017]

I can't say it is totally awful because at the very beginning it appeared to be something that would be extremely scary. As I got in about the first 10 minutes, Maybe a spoiler if that. You start wondering, here is a couple in a new country. The boy friend wants to marry her. they meet two guys and they go off with them. the boy friend goes into a T bar and leaves his girl outside with the other guy. I mean who is really this dumb. they are hanging out as if they are child hood buddies. this alone started to turn me off from this movie. If it doesn't change in the next two minutes I will turn it off. So far it is a turn-off. if you are bored and nothing to do, give it a shot and don't worry about walking away to make popcorn. Well, I sat here watching it and I am getting rid of it.

BAD ripoff.

[Patient444 · 3/10 · 4 September 2017]

Wow, was this a bad experience or what? Can't believe I even managed to sit it through entirely, tho it took me 2 tries and 2 days to complete it.

Ghost House is a very lazy execution, with plenty of moments made just to fill in the running time, zero originality, bad special effects, poor ghost concept and a combo between characters and dialogue that will give you headaches.

Sad such movies are still made, I don't even know their target audience, perhaps a mix, American-Asian-Horror fans, but I do believe in the end it managed to annoy every single one of us. This is something you have to stay far away from.

Cheers!

A Genuine Ghost Story

[claudio_carvalho · 7/10 · 9 September 2017]

On the arrival in Thailand, the Americans Jim (James Landry Hébert) and his girlfriend Julie (Scout Taylor-Compton) hire the polite chauffeur Gogo (Michael S. New) and his van at the airport. They sightsee Bangkok and learn the legend of the ghost houses, miniature houses where spirits peacefully live and do not haunt the living. Then Jim proposes Julie to marry him with an engagement ring. They meet the British Robert (Russell Geoffrey Banks) and Billy (Rich Lee Gray) in the hotel lobby and are invited to celebrate their engagement with them. Robert summons Jim to visit a fleshpots and Billy stays outside with Julie. When they leave the spot, Julie has an argument with Jim that is drunken and accepts Robert's invitation to visit ghost houses at the outskirts. Robert wears Julie's scarf about a doll's neck and then he flees with Billy leaving the American couple in the middle of nowhere. Julie does not feel well and Jim calls Gogo to find them and take Julie to a hospital. However, when Gogo sees Julie, he takes her to a nearby village where his aunts live. Then they take Julie to a monk that wears amulets about her wrist and Julie recovers. They return to the hotel and when Julie removes her amulets, she has dreadful visions. What has Robert done with Julie?

"Ghost Story" is a totally underrated horror film with a genuine ghost story. The creepy and spooky screenplay does not have flaws and explores the beauties and beliefs of the exotic Thailand with magnificent locations. The few special effects are excellent. The cast is great and the unknown Scout Taylor-Compton is a beautiful woman and has top-notch performance. In the en, "Ghost Story" is one of the best recently released horror film. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

This movie needs its own spirit house...

[jenncarter-13193 · 4/10 · 2 January 2018]

While the subject of Thai spirit houses makes for an interesting story line, that is the only positive thing I have to say about this movie. The creative team appears to have done their job - the camera shots provide a lot of visual interest and seem to have been well planned, the dialogue itself isn't bad - the actors are simply failing to make the script convincing.

It's difficult to find a likable character - Julie is childish and insipid and Jim is condescending and abrasive. All of the actors seem to be playing a separate game of "who can be the most stereotypical?".

The director threw in some sex scenes that do nothing to further the plot, they are just *there*. It also glosses over the human trafficking crisis in southeast Asia with a flashy visit to the red light district - which again, it doesn't do much to further the plot, just adds another element to make the characters even more unlikable.

Altogether it's a sad repeat of more of the same - a horror film with a promising premise but is dragged down by the actors and by thinking that a little T&A will make the viewers ignore the trainwreck happening on screen.

4/10 stars - Plus points for some beautiful camera shots and an interesting antagonist, minus points for bad acting.

Movie Superlatives

Most Unbelievable - When Julie makes out with Jim mere hours after he's locked lips with a sex worker. I don't care how close to death you just were, you'd better wash him with a strong disinfectant first.

Most Realistic - Brit guy v. American guy slapfight.

Low-budget but competent ghost story.

[roscoe666 · 6/10 · 2 September 2017]

Two Americans go to Thailand and are tricked into taking an item from a Ghost House (a miniature house where spirits live so they don't occupy your house).

Overall, not bad. Production values pretty decent for a non-major studio film. The cinematography belies the budget. The leads are a bit annoying, but the supporting cast give a better performance.

The jump scares are up to par, and it is pretty well-paced - not just another pale-faced Asian girl ghost film.

The only minor irritation is the ending, and the fate of the people who try to help them is all rather glossed over in favour of the fate of the main protagonists. It feels a little bit rushed.

I would recommend for fans of the genre, who like something a little bit different.

Ghost House: Abnormally bad

[Platypuschow · 2/10 · 24 January 2019]

I went into Ghost House with low expectations, I believed it would be yet another generic cliched Hollywood horror film but was mistaken (In a way I hadn't expected).

The Thai/US collaboration tells the story of a couple enjoying the sights of Thailand when one of them is tricked into desecrating a "Ghost House" and finds herself cursed.

So basically it's nothing we haven't seen before so I was right to an extent, but I hadn't expected it to be quite this bad. Hollywood cliched nonsense is usually dire but they at least stick to a tried and tested formula that is passable to a degree, this isn't.

The writing is appalling, the characters just aren't likeable preventing you from having any level of empathy and our antagonist is as engaging and original as run of the mill slasher film.

As the credits rolled I was left in awe, did that really just happen I thought? Did they drop the ball that hard? Ghost House is genuinely that bad, has no redeeming qualities and had it not been for the production values would likely not even be getting the second star.

The Good:

Antagonist looks okay

The Bad:

Weak characters

Dreadfully written

Just awful all round

Great movie!

[drleomarvin-58200 · 8/10 · 10 January 2018]

I seen this pop up on my Netflix notifications so I decided to give it a try I always give the film 5 or 10 minutes before I decide if it's another bad cheesy horror film before I shut it off. This one made it. I have watched just about every horror movie out. I think they did a fantastic job on this film. Remember when watching this that it is not a huge budget film. The whole crew did a great job! A little predictable at times. This was diffinetly 10 steps above most lower budget films. If you are a true horror/thriller/dark movies lover I would recommend it. Had a pretty good script, good camera shots and just enough spooky to keep you on your toes. I hope to see more films from them. They definitely have potential. Great job to the cast and crew!

Simple story, well shot and beautiful

[mikemdp · 6/10 · 15 February 2019]

Not sure why there are so many negative responses published here to this absolutely competent nod to the Asian "ghost" genre.

Yes, the story is cliched: An American disturbs some kind of relic and as a result is haunted by a vengeful spirit.

What raises "Ghost House" up, however, are some beautiful locations, some obvious guerrilla-style filmmaking, interesting and creative direction and a funky visual style.

Also, while the lead actors are often charmless and whiny, the supporting cast is a hoot, from an old hippie shaman to a Thai witch doctor whose facial expressions are extraordinary. It's obvious they hired a number of Thai locals in these supporting parts, and that lends needed authenticity to the film.

Most of the scares are "jumps," but effective, and there are a couple of real harrowing and haunting scenes.

At the end of the day, "Ghost House" transcends it's weaknesses to become, as a whole, a decent, interesting effort that's worth your time.

The director of this film ain't no Sam Raimi.

[Fella_shibby · 5/10 · 5 November 2017]

Saw this recently on a DVD. Found it to be lame n full of clichés. The film is about an American couple holidaying in Thailand who find themselves haunted by an evil spirit. This film has shades of Drag me to hell, a la the spirit will torture for three days n will consume after that. Well, the director of this film ain't no Raimi who did a terrific job with Drag me... Here the scares r annoying at times because its been done so many times. Pretty much everything is borrowed. The film does boast of some good cinematography. The Thai countryside has been shot very well. The place where the shaman lives is almost like the lair of Medusa from Clash of the titans n also similar to the castle of the wizard from Conan the destroyer. Situated in the middle of nowhere, the road/way to it is totally spooky with the mist n water surrounding it. But what do these shaman eat n what do they do without any amenities or other stuff? Personally, i have disliked most Asian horror scares i.e. scary girls with black hair, twisted bodies, disjointed movements, old witches, hollow faces, dark eyes, sudden jump scares n pop ups. Some of its effectiveness has been diluted by imitation. Demonic possessions premise has been done so many times that only die hard fans of the genre may enjoy this.

Waste of time

[plargreg · 1/10 · 29 April 2018]

All this movie is is a series of stolen scenes and ideas from other movies in between cliches, tropes and bad acting. I'm VERY easily scared and i honestly didn't get scared once while watching this alone. WHAT i did get was very frustrated at how annoying the main characters were, how they agreed to go a weird private country night trip with some weird obviously sketchy guys they met at a bar. ALSO WHOMEVER PLAYS THE HUSBAND I NEVER EVER WANNA SEE AGAIN

Let this one go

[TheLittleSongbird · 3/10 · 27 May 2018]

Saw 'Ghost House', being fond of horror/thriller regardless of budget (even if not my favourite genre) and being intrigued somewhat by the idea. Being behind on my film watching and reviewing, with a long to watch and review list that keeps getting longer, it took me a while to get round to reviewing it.

Unfortunately, despite not reading any reviews purposefully before watching, am going to have to agree that 'Ghost House' is not really good. A film that started off okay, but ran out of steam very quickly and rapidly got worse by a second half that makes one not want to keep watching. Never judge a film without seeing the whole thing and wanted to give 'Ghost House', so gave it a fair chance.

'Ghost House's' best assets were the production values, which did have some eeriness and nowhere near as cheap as expected, and the music, which not the most memorable in the world didn't detract from the atmosphere.

Although too rushed with too much crammed in that keeping up is not completely easy, the first fifteen minutes are actually the most interesting the story gets.

However, so much brings 'Ghost House' down. The cast have no chemistry at all and nobody is above mediocre (most awful) and the direction is so phoned in and pedestrian, one gets the sense that the director showed no interest in the film at all.

Where 'Ghost House' most underwhelms is the writing and story. The far too exposition-heavy writing is incredibly lazy, it's awkward in dialogue, very confused as a result of not tying things up or going into full detail and doesn't feel complete. The story suffers from a very limp pace after the first fifteen minutes and gets slower and slower until an interminably dragged out second half. It further suffers from feeling too much like a short film stretched out with a lot of useless padding and tiresome repetition. The characters are uninteresting and annoying and the inconsistent and illogical motivations bring them down.

For a film billed as a horror, there is very little interesting and nothing remotely scary. They are too few and are far too predictable, anaemic and weakly timed to make impact, with the dull pacing and obvious sound effects cheapening them significantly. In terms of the thriller elements, 'Ghost House' doesn't engage let alone thrill, the film started off very well but feels wasted by how quickly everything runs out of steam. The ending is an anti-climactic head-scratcher.

Overall, weak but not a waste. 3/10 Bethany Cox