[THE CHARNEL HOUSE
opens in Cleveland on Friday November 4th exclusively at Tower City Cinemas.]
Review by Bob Ignizio
This being The Cleveland Movie Blog, I always look forward
to films shot in my home town with a special kind of anticipation. Unfortunately,
would-be horror film THE CHARNEL HOUSE
is a major disappointment.
The premise is that an old slaughter house, secretly a murderous
playground for its owner Thomas (Patrick M. Walsh), has been turned into the super
fancy, state-of-the-art Fairmont Lofts by entrepreneur Alex Reaves (Callum
Blue). Everything is run by computers using voice activated controls.
Unfortunately for residents, there's a ghost in the machine in the form of Thomas'
son Rupert (Alden Tab). When Thomas decided to kill himself rather than face
justice, he tried to take Rupert with him. But whether he succeeded or not is
not entirely clear at first.
Brace yourself for a whole lot of plot and backstory and
very little action as Devin Pyles (Erik LaRay Harvey) moves in to investigate
the building. He's looking for clues to the disappearance of his father, who worked
at the old slaughterhouse until Thomas was revealed as a serial killer, and may
well have been a victim. Meanwhile, Alex' daughter Mia (Makenzie Moss) is
making friends with Rupert, which her mom Charlotte (Nadine Velazquez)
incorrectly assumes is of the imaginary variety. A few other residents of the
Lofts have subplots as well, none of which are particularly interesting.
As a horror film, THE
CHARNEL HOUSE is a failure. It isn't scary, it isn't gory, and the plot moves
at a snail's pace. And what's the point of making such a big deal out of all
the high-tech accoutrements if the film isn't going to pay them off? The bland
direction of Craig Moss further detracts from the proceedings, and the cast,
while competent, mostly deliver their lines with the stiffness of soap opera
actors. It's the kind of film that, although only 90 minutes long, feels like
it has overstayed its welcome long before the closing credits roll. 2 out of 4
stars.
I attended the Cleveland premiere of The Charnel House and after reading your review, I respectfully disagree with your blog. First, you called the movie "a would-be horror film". I believe the film's genre is classified as a suspense/thriller and I feel it met this criteria. I didn't need to see violence and gory or graphic images to know what was happening to the actor/actress. My imagination filled in the scenes. Yes, there are moments that are a little slow, but overall the film kept my attention. I enjoyed the cast's performance, especially Alex's (Callum Blue)transformation from a caring/good person to a sinister/evil person. I am intrigued with the doppelganger aspect of the film. I would give this film a 4 out of 5.
ReplyDeleteThanks for taking the time to comment, Pat. And glad you were able to enjoy the film more than I did.
DeleteI do stand by my labeling of the film as horror, though. Given the supernatural elements and serial killer aspect of the film, and that there are scenes clearly meant to induce shivers in the audience, I don't think that's unfair.
Is the slaughterhouse they used for outside shots the one on 65th?
ReplyDelete