Dark HouseTitle: Dark House (2014)
Director: Victor Salva
Runtime: 102 minutes

Dark House is the latest horror offering from director Victor Salva. He’s best known for the two Jeepers Creepers films. The first one is great, while the second one is a little different, to say the least. I didn’t even know Dark House existed until Branden was like, “Hey, you know there’s a new Victor Salva film out today, right?”

Nick Di Santo (Luke Kleintank) has always had visions about this creepy house. Upon his mother’s death, he inherits the very house in his dreams. So he grabs some friends, and they venture off to this creepy abandoned house in the middle of the woods.

Once they arrive they run into Seth, played by Tobin Bell (best known as Jigsaw from the Saw series), and then some killer hunchbacks appear with axes. The group tries to escape, but every time they think they are away from the house, they end up right back at it.

Dark House feels like a pilot episode for the latest CW supernatural thriller. The blood and special effects are pretty good, and the acting isn’t too bad either. It’s a very slow burn, and frankly, I don’t care for the film at all. It just keeps going with nothing really happening. The fact that Nick has the power to see people’s deaths in advance also hinders a few moments for me because you know what’s coming. There are also strange moments of things talking through the vents of the house, which are just comical.

Then something happens.

At this point, the film does a complete 180. The plot finally gets interesting, and I’m completely sold, hook, line and sinker. It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s a nice twist. The ending is a bit abrupt, though, and I don’t really care for how loosely everything is tied up.

I don’t love Dark House, but it’s a solid enough film that I recommend horror fans check out if it hits any streaming services. The DVD offers a shallow, 20-minute making-of featurette that doesn’t really dive into the plot at all. If you enjoyed Salva’s other film – Jeepers Creepers – then you’ll probably like Dark House.

two_and_a_half_stars

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Rent on Netflix