By Melissa Antoinette Garza
It is now 2:37 AM. My husband is lying beside me asleep and I once again am battling insomnia. My Lionhead bunny Arino is in his cage staring at me silently asking to be taken out. He has an enormous cage with a mobile, toys, hay, food and water. He’s the most spoiled bunny in the world and he’s out of the cage for about 16 hours a day. Still, he doesn’t think it’s enough and would much rather be running around in the living room.
Nonetheless, I’m fighting my motherly instinct to run to him and instead am watching Mr. Hush on Netflix. I’ve been curious about this movie for a while but there have been so many negative reviews, I’ve put off watching it.
The film opens with our protagonist Holland (Brad Loree) spending Halloween with his wife Julie (Jessica Cameron) and young daughter. The three are having a great night. It’s clear that he has a fantastic life and is a family man, through and through.
Everything changes when someone bangs on the door. Holland assumes it’s another child looking for candy. Instead a Priest is standing before him. First, Holland thinks it’s a costume, but the man assures him it is not. The priest introduces himself as Father Flannigan (Edward X. Young). Flannigan says that his van broke down while bringing young parishioners trick-or-treating. Holland is oblivious to the fishy vibe that the man of the cloth is exhibiting and welcomes him in with open arms.
Once inside, Flannigan shows his true colors. He isn’t a priest at all! His identity is clear. He is the dastardly Mr. Hush. He puts a large knife to Julie as Holland begs him to take what he wants. Without remorse or hesitation, he slits Julie’s throat. Holland rushes upstairs to check on his daughter but she’s gone.
Holland is left to cope with his grief. Ten years pass and one can see that Holland’s life has not been easy. He now has the same hairstyle as Kenny Rogers and looks haggard and beaten down. He works in a kitchen scrubbing dishes and lives in a tent. In his dreams he relives the terror as his nightmares are filled with visions of Mr. Hush. He awakes hyperventilating.
Things slowly improve for good ole Holland. He meets Debbie (Connie Giordano) and the two begin dating and Holland slowly finds happiness in his life once again.
Word gets back to Mr. Hush that Holland is doing better. Well, he can’t have that. He hates Holland! He takes our hero hostage. Holland doesn’t exhibit fear but instead hurls insults and threats.
Slowly, Hush reveals why he has tortured Holland. His motive is a bit of a letdown, but still acceptable.
I should mention that Stephen Geoffreys has a supporting role. It was good to see him though I wish he had more screen time. For those who don’t recall the name, I’ll save you the time it would take you to Google it. He portrayed Evil Ed in the cult classic Fright Night (1985). If you still don’t know who he is, then you deserve to have to look him up!
Overall, the movie is far from great! It’s silly, over-the-top and campy. It definitely has a lot of filler and unnecessary scenes. I read a few reviews that claimed to have difficulty following the film. I find that odd because the plot was very basic and straightforward. There wasn’t any ambiguity or major questions left unanswered. Without question the abundance of scenes that didn’t add anything to the film should have been cut out as they ruin any pace or tension that could have been built.
The acting is above par for such a low-budget production. It was interesting to see that Young is from my home state of Massachusetts. He certainly stole the show. He was a fun charismatic villain that was enjoyable to watch.
Loree also did a great job. He was able to invoke sympathy and keep the viewer championing for him to prevail.
The film is most certainly superior to what some are saying. If you are someone who absolutely loathes the low-budget genre, I would suggest staying away. Even those who enjoy the genre will need a certain level of patience to get through some of the redundancy of certain scenes. Still, if you can get through those there is something here.
It’s a unique movie with the tone of 1980s horror. It definitely isn’t scary but it’s entertaining and amusing. The conclusion is awesome and there are some very great lines.
Scared Stiff Rating: 5/10
