By Melissa Antoinette Garza
One of the greatest aspects about watching a new movie is when you expect very little but then it turns out to be fantastic!
My brother had started watching The Hole, and thought it was so good he stopped it so my husband and I could enjoy the entertainment.
The film begins with Susan (Teri Polo) moving to a new home in effort to escape her abusive ex-husband. Though he sits in jail, the family fears him so much that whenever he finds out where they live, they relocate.
Susan’s two sons, Dane (Chris Massoglia) who is a teenager and Lucas (Nathan Gamble) who is much younger, begin looking at their new house with their neighbor Julie (Haley Bennett). It’s obvious that Julie and Dane like each other and they begin hanging out often.
In the basement they find a locked cover. They take off the padlocks and discover a hole that doesn’t seem to have an ending. They put a camera down the hole to see if anything appears. They watch the video and don’t see anything but the moment they turn away an eye can be seen on the screen.
Soon a small clown doll begins terrifying Lucas, a young child that has a connection with Julie begins haunting her, and a large figure follows Dane.
The three seek out the previous owner, Creepy Carl (Bruce Dern) who tells them that both he and they are going to die and that there isn’t an escape.
They find out that the only way to beat whatever resides beneath the hole is to fight their fears head on.
The pace of the movie is terrific. There’s a fun factor that’s similar to Super 8 or to Goonies. That’s said, it still has legitimately creepy scenes. For example, the clown doll is beating up Lucas and crawling up the stairs in a really frightening manner.
On a horror film level, fans of Fear of the Dark will especially enjoy The Hole. It’s a fun ride that flies by.
Another high point of this film is that the teenagers were dressed like teenagers and not Paris Hilton slut clones.
Also, seeing Bruce Dern who is just phenomenal was awesome. I adored him in Diggstown and The Burbs
Overall, I can’t suggest this movie enough. Netflix fans have no excuse but to watch this movie. Watch out though – there’s two films called The Hole. Make sure you watch the correct one though I heard the other isn’t half bad.
Scared Stiff Rating 8/10
