Bad Ben (2016 TV Movie) User Reviews

Nicely Crafted Found Footage Tale

[davidm-14 · 6/10 · 8 December 2016]

OK, this guy is the only person in the movie, so you have to get used to him first. I found him kind of hard to sympathize with.

He comes off as a bit of a schlub (almost a dead ringer for actor/comedian Brian Posehn) who wants to document everything about this house he bought at auction as he's prepping it for sale. Right away, odd things start happening - furniture moving, things in the attic, things in the basement, etc.). At first, he attributes it to people breaking in, but he soon realizes there's something more going on as he looks into the family that lived there before and mysteriously left everything behind.

I thought the tension ratcheted up nicely and I was surprised that I got caught up as much as I did.

Schlock Lovers & Haters, Rejoyce.

[pdlussier1 · 6/10 · 25 April 2019]

I'm mostly an art-house and indie film lover, but I've a penchant for horror, which means I watch a lot of schlock, knowing full well that budget and star-power don't mean a thing in terms of defining "good" within this genre.

Nonetheless, a single-actor, next-to-no-budget found-footage horror film in the vein of Paranormal Activity... that's the kind of thing any rational being should run away from, expecting a painfully unwatchable and sloppily structured video akin to uncle Bob & aunt Weave's redecoration home videos.

Yet, I was intrigued. A whole series?! Some of the reviews here solidified my curiosity, so I gave it a go.

It is what it is.

Haters will hate, and whiners will whine, which says more about them and their inability to understand "niche" and "objective". If you despise found footage films, just don't watch found-footage films. Easy. Unless watching them just so you can complain is your thing, which makes you far less interesting than found-footage films.

Having said that, I can respect legitimate reasons to hate this film that anyone may express... if or when I come across them. But, if you don't mind the genre, or if you love it, I'm sure you'll want to exclaim, "Good work, Nigel!" for this surprisingly engrossing one-man effort.

Well done, Nigel!

A Breath of Fresh Air in Found Footage.

[anissa-taylor · 5/10 · 17 July 2017]

I hate found footage films as a rule of thumb, and if I review them it's either because they really suck or because I actually didn't mind them. This film falls into the latter category.

I went into this film not knowing it was a solo film and a first venture, it was available on Prime and I was bored. I only found out the rest after, which made me extra impressed!

This film is simple, the effects are (generally, there is one that stands out rather negatively, you'll know it when you see it) are subtle and pretty well done. The reason for all of the cameras is pretty solid, and it's not one of those over the top "And then I was PINNED IN THE CEILING BY AN UNSEEN FORCE!" type of things. It's refreshing in it's simplicity.

While I wouldn't call it believable, the vast majority of this film feels more realistic than others of the genre and that's a nice touch. Although a bit more knowledge on the occult might have helped.

Not perfect, not very scary, but still much better than a lot of found footage films of late.

Bad Ben - Bad Movie? Well, no, not really...

[Sebadonut101 · 3/10 · 7 December 2017]

Honestly, Im not quite sure how to score this film..

Bad Ben is a very low budget film starring one man, Nigel Bach, who appears to also be the director and bizarrely, it seems the entire film is shot in his actual house. Its a found footage film. Its a Paranormal Activity style scary film. Seriously, everything about Bad Ben sounds, well...bad. But here is the thing - Bad Ben was oddly entertaining and held my attention for the entire duration and I still can't work out why.

Despite the low/non-existent budget it is shot fairly competently and doesn't suffer from the poor cinematography and terrible lightning that a lot of the low budget horror flicks I have subjected myself to over the years often do. The acting is okay, sort of, and Nigel Bach's character Tom Riley was very amusing in the way he went from mildly irritated to outright angry at the ghost's refusal to leave his new home.

Look, I'm not recommending Bad Ben. Part of me wants to but I just can't. But, if you're curious and want to get in on a potentially cult movie from the ground floor then, well, give it a go I guess. And if you like it, I hear this is the first in a trilogy. Yes, that's right - a trilogy. Good heavens.

Ive scored it a 3, but could quite easily score it higher. And some would possibly score it much, much higher and in a way I can kinda see why..

What a great surprise, amongst too many so-so found footage films

[gegen-daemon · 7/10 · 20 March 2017]

I should point out that I'm one of those rare breed of people that absolutely loves found footage films. But it's possible for them to be so awful, they're un watchable. Many of the recent ones I've seen have fallen in, or close to, that category but I was very happily surprised by this.

You can see that the one and only guy in the movie is an 'amateur', so to speak but he does a fine job of keeping you captivated throughout, simply by playing 'normal'.

The insistence of filming everything is questionable at times, particularly when some genuinely scary stuff starts going down, but I find people choosing to stick around once the scares go through the roof questionable in most films so can't complain too much here.

As somebody else said, the actor reminds me of that US comedian from the Big Bang Theory and Sarah Silverman Show and even sounds alike, adding to the comedy element of this movie.

I have a question though - what in %@*&'s name was Bad Ben at the end there?

Terrible and boring

[slkoehler-95789 · 1/10 · 14 September 2018]

I have no idea what other people loved so much about this movie. It was VERY slow and boring. Literally nothing happens - until the very end - except some bad smells and some furniture moving around and the ending is annoying with the screeching.

For a minute I thought it would get interesting when he asks questions of the music box but all we find out is that Ben is a person and "bad things happened." And later we find out there is a good Ben and a Bad one - that's it. I don't even think this is spoiling the movie but if I can spare anyone else from wasting their time, great.

I do like found footage films but many sadly, like this one are just slow and boring.

One Of The Better Ones

[wandernn1-81-683274 · 7/10 · 29 May 2020]

I actually saw this years ago when it was first released and really enjoyed it.

I thought I would revisit it now and actually put in a review.

+1 Star For Being One of the more entertaining 'Found Footage' movies out there.

+1 Star for still years after it remains, one of the better 'found footage' movies out there.

Really well done considering it's basically a one man show and Nigel has gone on to do many more projects since!!!! A fun watch. For me anyway. I could see why some would find it boring but I enjoyed it.

Not amazing but ok for the budget

[kanecrabtree · 4/10 · 20 August 2018]

Its quite Creepy at times and I like some of the stuff it does but nothing really happens it's like the bits in insidious where you see the ghost in the background but that's the entire film and nothing happens at the end but you can't expect much on really low budget

Good and bad

[mattdkieffer · 7/10 · 4 June 2017]

If you do not like found footage movies than do not watch this. Found footage is a niche genre and it seems like only a select number of people actually like it. I love found footage films and I thought this one was pretty good initially.

Objects were moving on their own, doors were opening & closing, there was scratching on doors, and the occasional shadow figure. This movie had me entrenched from the beginning. For a low budget film the acting was never bad or cringe-worthy. The one guy in the movie did pretty well and made it seem prey believable.

The last few minutes of the movie were weird and left the film feeling unfinished. Maybe that was the intention of the director but I was definitely looking for something more conclusive.

Things that could have improved the movie I think would include the following. A physical revealing of Bad Ben; Not having the main character wear only boxer briefs throughout the film.

I give this film a C.

Had good intentions

[dannymitt · 4/10 · 24 September 2019]

This film almost hits on the spooky or creepy style of horror and scares that I like, but unfortunately it fell off pretty quick. It quickly became cheesy with the obviously fake video overlays that may have looked real in 1995, but it made it feel fabricated.

Some of the scenes meant to be scary also felt thrown together and fake. I want a found footage horror to tell and not always show.

didn't give it a chance

[phenomynouss · 8/10 · 10 March 2018]

I fell victim to the rather derpy name "Bad Ben" as well as the odd choice of poster design on AmazonPrime. The selection kept coming up again and again no matter how often I overlooked it or showed no interest in it.

Last week, I almost gave it a shot, watching the trailer for it, and based on the trailer I honestly thought it was a joke. It looked absurd and childish, less like a horror movie than a series of bumbling outtakes from someone's home movies edited together like a horror movie.

Based solely on the overwhelming good reviews I kept seeing of it, I gave it a try, utterly astonished that this entire film was done completely and utterly by one man; the producer, the writer, the editor, the director, the star, the owner of the house, the guy who spent $300 according to IMDB to make this entire film.

this is a "found footage" film of a guy who bought a lavish house at a Sheriff's auction, and goes in to find it is still fully furnished and decorated, and equipped with dozens of security cameras around the house. As he documents his attempt to flip it and sell it, he deals with the usual escapades of these modern day haunted house situations; motion-activated cameras turning on at odd moments after detecting some apparently ghostly motion, doors opening and closing on their own, and random power outages and strong odors.

Being the only person on screen at all times, nigel bach is surprisingly good in his role, being comfortable and nonoffensive, possessing neither an unpleasant voice or attitude nor a particularly difficult accent or way of intonating. He has a way of acting that feels like he is not acting, like he really is just filming himself doing something mundane and isn't projecting or enunciating or emoting for the sake of the audience, while at the same time never coming across as flat or monotonous.

What little visual effects there are are done very quickly so as not to reveal themselves, while the vast majority of the horror comes solely from lingering creepiness and the occasional perfectly timed jump scare (such as the scene with him talking to the music box on the table).

While the name played a large role in turning me off from the film, the explanation behind it only adds to the film's creepiness and unsettling nature, in the form of a child's drawing of his mom and dad in front of the house, with himself labelled as "Good Ben" and another angry-looking creature apparently drawn underground labelled as "Bad Ben"

The film never lets itself go off the rails with a lengthy backstory or exposition dump, while only indulging a bit with its ending. For an estimated $300 this is probably one of the better "haunted house with security cameras" horror movies I've seen

I know it's found footage again, but it's decent.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 6/10 · 3 April 2018]

Nigel Bach has done the impossible, to produce and star solo in the done to death found footage/haunted house genre and make itit rath enjoyable. As a genre, it won't do what it really should have done a few years ago and vanish, but, Bad Ben perhaps shows that there is still a little steam left in it. Bad Ben looks like it was made on a shoe string, and that is perhaps it's charm, Bach is incredibly likeable in the solo role, and has enough charisma to make the film rather enjoyable. Not bad at all. 6/10

A budget Paranormal Activity

[BadChristian · 3/10 · 23 June 2019]

Bad Ben is a standard "Found Footage" film, with the unique element of a home security system and an Iphone being the sources of the footage. While I appreciate taking a new direction, we still end up going down the same, well worn path that 90% of Found Footage films follow. Plot wise, there really isn't anything new and it's pretty predictable. IMDB estimates that this movie cost about $300 to make, and it shows. There is only one actor in the whole film and he isn't that great; nothing he says is believable (which could be the writers fault and not his) and the only emotion he convincingly portrays is anger. His character is unbelievable and his actions are confusing at best. Most of the "action" is bad CG and practical effects. This movie is Paranormal Activity with slightly better acting and one-fiftieth the budget. It's not terrible, but it isn't particularly scary, realistic (for a "ghost movie"), or entertaining. For a movie that probably cost less to make than you spent on the TV you'd watch it on, it's decent. I applaud the intent and effort, but am unimpressed with the execution.

Not bad so far as low budget found footage goes...

[neilgooge · 5/10 · 28 April 2018]

It's OK, far from great, but far from terrible. I've definitely seen worse... You know... Like the other two...

I could not stop watching

[csullivan1980 · 7/10 · 12 December 2019]

Very low budget but I have to admit that I could not turn away. I was not sure what I was getting into when I saw this pop up on my Amazon Prime list of movies. As a fan of found footage movies I really did not know what to expect while I hit play. Obviously from the start it is low budget which was not an issue for me but as the movie progressed I found myself actually curious to finish. Say what you will say about Nigel Bach but I had a good time watching this movie. At one point a jump scare got me for the first time in years when I thought I knew everything about modern horror movies. I was delighted to discover this was just the first part of of three movies! If you have Amazon Prime and want to watch something different watch this!

Hated It

[HarleanHayworth · 1/10 · 14 November 2018]

One of the worst horror movies I have ever seen. Very low budget, bad writing, and really bad acting. Avoid this one at all costs!

Liked most all of it

[misscath-02668 · 6/10 · 4 October 2017]

Found footage is one of my favorites if it's done right. Kind of a Paranormal Activity without the backstory. Lots of suspense and good writing, although it dragged at some points. Didn't get scary until near the end. My biggest complaint is the main character was a whiny, nasty little man who was beyond irritating.

Boring

[rebecca-hinson · 1/10 · 12 February 2017]

Nothing happens, don't waste your time. Worst found footage and maybe, worst film ever. There is only one character in this and he just talks to the camera/ himself throughout except to sass the ghosts.

There was one moment that I jumped and it was only because I wasn't fully paying attention and didn't expect a bang.

You don't see anything supernatural or remotely scary. I don't know why I even stuck this out to the end.

Disrespecting a grave was such a rookie mistake and from then on I knew he was going to die.

Who gets confirmation of a ghost, in this case it beat him up; and chooses to stay living there? I would have thought that he would have at least called a priest but he does some lame attempt at removing the ghost.

I WAS ACTUALLY SURPRISED BY IT!

[camarossdriver · 7/10 · 12 November 2019]

Considering the budget he had,and since he was the only one in the movie (or WAS he?) this film was actually pretty good! It DID lag on from time to time,but overall it was well made and acted. I've seen FAR WORSE "found footage" movies. If you want jump scares and sheer terror for an hour and a half,this probably isn't for you,but if you are a fan of just plain creepy films,give this a watch. I really thought it was a good film.

A Movie Where Nothing Happens

[lovelyxnight · 2/10 · 27 June 2022]

I sat through this entire film hoping that at some point something interesting would happen but nothing does. I understand it was likely an amateur low budget film but there was just nothing remotely interesting going on. Overall it was more comedic than anything else but not in a good way. Just seemed like it was made rather quickly without any direction of where to go with it from the start to finish.

The movie itself isn't the most fun thing about it...

[S_Soma · 8/10 · 16 July 2017]

Fair warning: I'm a bit overly enamored of this "movie". Not so much because of the movie itself but because of the interesting probable circumstances of its creation. I find THAT part utterly fascinating. And I'll get to that part in a few moments.

This review contains spoilers and there's no "may" about it.

To begin with, I should make it clear that I don't consider found footage flicks to be "movies" in any common, traditional sense. They simply lack too many of the features of an actual movie. They share some of the physical characteristics of a movie such as sound and moving pictures, but they have more in common with factory job training videos than they do with actual movies. In fact, I would hold that factory job training videos are closer to real movies than are found footage flicks.

Which is not to say that found footage flicks can't be fun and entertaining in their own right. Just don't think of them as movies but as some other form of entertainment all on their own. Go for a sort of "found footage flicks are to movies what Velveeta is to cheese" outlook; just keep in mind that neither one is the real deal and try to enjoy them for what they actually are.

BAD BEN, as long as you don't make the mistake of approaching it as a "movie", actually isn't all that bad. It has most if not all of the agreed-upon elements of a found footage flick (a bit amateurish, made- for-a-dollar, few actors (only one, as a matter of fact, in this one), and so on). And to its credit it does bring a few of its own original quirks to the milieu. Whether or not that's a good thing is something you'll have to decide for yourself.

For the balance of this "review", in terms of the traditional elements of movie reviews as they appear on IMDb, I'm going to leave that to the other reviewers. And now I take the path less traveled…

BAD BEN I suspect is very different from most found footage flicks in a LOT of ways.

My journey of discovery with BAD BEN began when I noticed that Tom Riley, played by Nigel Bach, the one and only character in the entire production, was NOT ONLY the only character in the entire production but ALSO the executive producer, director, film editor and I'm guessing the writer and After Effects technician and craft table supervisor et al. (although I didn't see those credits go by).

Interesting…

When you look at BAD BEN is a whole, there's absolutely nothing about it that suggests that a single person could not or did not make the entire film. I'm guessing here, but I'm thinking that Nigel Bach made the entire thing single-handedly.

Hmmmm.... Let's see… In the movie, on the way home from dinner, Tom videos the name of his home street, "Steelmanville Rd". I poke around a bit and discover that there is a road known locally as Steelmanville Rd. in Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, although for mapping purposes it seems to be more known as "Atlantic 651". Well, I think I'll just virtually cruise around good ol' Atlantic 651 for a while and see what I find.

Well, I'll be.

Turns out the house in the movie actually does exist, and it exists at 358 Steelmanville Rd., Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey. I would include a link for you to look at it directly but IMDb is always such a buzz killer about that sort of thing.

At this point, I have a theory of my very own and completely unsubstantiated. I think Nigel Bach made this entire movie by himself and used his own home for the production. I would not be surprised to find out that he's done the whole thing as some sort of a tax write off for the entire house and the surveillance system and cameras and all that other stuff. If this is the case, I am extremely impressed. The guy looks sort of like a real-life Elmer Fudd but he must have a completely unstoppable can do, do-it-yourself attitude. Personally, I give top props to Nigel Bach.

And for the punchline, I come to discover that ol' Nigel apparently liked the experience well enough that he's actually completed a prequel in a more involved and complex production called, wait for it…

"Steelmanville Road".

I kid you not. And it's available to watch for free if you're a Prime member on Amazon. Again, I would give you a direct link but IMDb got heavy starch in their underpants when I tried.

I think Nigel Bach, Elmer Fudd appearances notwithstanding, would be a very interesting person to know.

And the ultimate mystery? If you look for the movie "Steelmanville Road" on IMDb... IT DOESN'T EXIST! OOOOOOooooooo!

Decent

[Saiph90 · 6/10 · 23 July 2017]

Found footage has been flogged to death and beyond, one more shaky film inducing a headache is one to many, so my heart sank when we started watching the film. With using stable house cameras thankfully we had the alternative to the hand held camera. The central character is not hugely likable but is watchable, his motive for staying put is all his money is tied up in the house. When he is badly beaten up in his bed even the most hardy would have upped sticks. This has some nice scares and only having the one central character works well to build tension he is obviously a loner and he is by himself to face the demon. Maybe a bit more reveal on what is 'Bad Ben' might have helped, I am reading there is a film out there as a prequel which I am intrigued enough to track down.

Terrible movie with mundane filler.

[arifeannor · 1/10 · 1 October 2018]

Actual time of anything useful for the plot was 10 mins. Guy pretends to talk to someone on the phone or to people who may watch the videos whole time while he does tons of stuff to fill time. This is what people think of when you hear that only one guy made a movie and put it on the internet. If you like watching bad movies to make fun of the people who made it then watch it, if your looking for an actual movie, no movie here.

Tragic!

[htownqt03 · 1/10 · 17 May 2018]

Don't bother wasting your time on this movie. Everything was just terrible.

dark horse that should have remained dark

[s-tessler · 28 June 2018]

I can't believe all the good reviews this movie got. They must all be relatives of the actor/director. I've rarely seen such an amateur production. Bad stilted acting, bargain basement budget re special effects, predictable and highschoolish. Dodge a bullet and skip this clunker!!! 2/10 and that's being generous.