I love this topic from Long and Short Reviews. For many years my favourite film was "Heavenly Creatures", and I still do love it. More recently I discovered "Hell House LLC" and its sequels, and those now take precedence. However, the one point of criticism I have for "Hell House LLC" also applied to "Heavenly Creatures" - the director's cut is better. yet harder to find.
"Hell House LLC" uses the mockumentary/found footage format to great effect and manages to evoke real dread, even though from an analytical perspective it's probably quite simple. It does, however, tread a fine line with how much it reveals of what's really going on, and possibly falls slightly on the side of not revealing enough. The director's cut does a better job, as it reveals a little more without going over the top, and as a result is scarier than the original - however, the director's cut has only just become available on Shudder after waiting ages for it, and the DVD and blu-ray are US only.
The film also has one issue which annoyed me the first time I saw it - every haunted house film has to have a good reason why they're not leaving the house, particularly when it's found footage, but in "Hell House LLC" they literally turn the camera off for this conversation and then switch it back on to say "You're right, we can't leave." The reason is revealed in a later film, but this seriously irritated me at the time.
I'm interested to see what everyone else is going to come up with!
I love Heavenly Creatures. It was the first movie that had a distressing effect on me. I was 11 when i watched it, so maybe a bit young, but I loved it and it's stayed with me. Also, I've been drawn to the Hell House LLC movies, but have yet to watch them. I'll have to make an effort.
ReplyDeleteHeavenly Creatures is definitely an intense experience, and the ending stays with you.
DeleteThey sound interesting!
ReplyDeleteAnd, yeah, that’s an important part of haunted house stories for sure. They must have a good reason for staying.
Lydia
Either that or they do an Insidious and make them leave straight away only for the ghost to follow them :)
DeleteNot familiar with them, but glad you enjoyed them.
ReplyDeleteThey're not for everyone, but I love them.
DeleteThat's quite the handwave!
ReplyDeleteDefinitely not the best way to handle it!
DeleteInteresting. Haunted houses aren't my favorite genre; "The Haunting of Hill House" and "The Amityville Horror" are about the only books in that genre I remember reading.
ReplyDeleteI like them when they're done well.
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