Jessica’s Thoughts – Horror Hotel the Movie
Horror Hotel the Movie, now available on Amazon Prime, is an anthology series of six short stories and features a variety of actors (who sometimes play different roles across the segments), directors, writers, and of course, overarching themes and aesthetics. The movie is an ambitious boiling pot of styles and sensibilities all centering on the bizarre and morose.
It’s an admirable attempt at paying homage to the greats—Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone and Alfred Hitchcock. Some attempts are brilliant, while others could be considered awkward and, at best, campy. It’s definitely a pick for the oddball horror fan. Indie horror never had a more diverse vehicle.
Segment 1 – Aliens Stole My Boyfriend
Synopsis: A “space buggy” carrying two blonde human-looking aliens crash-lands in the middle of a motel rat couple’s argument.
Beginning with the Quentin Tarantino-style 60s surfer music, I thought this might match some of the famous director’s intensity and vision. Sadly, I felt this short story had more in common with an undercooked student film. The underlying political theme of illegal aliens was handled with so little subtlety that the action falls flat, a product of the entire plot now seeming ingenuine. The ending was hugely dissatisfying, leaving more questions than answers. Like, what do the writers have against birth control pills anyway?
Segment 2 – Coma Girl
Synopsis: A husband buys his comatose wife out of the nursing facility to celebrate their 7-year wedding anniversary.
This short story included a classic twist ending that feels straight out of The Twilight Zone, but the execution left a little to be desired. I chalk it up to a possible bare bones budget, if not, the bare-bones production design and backyard-movie shooting style. Despite this, I thought the concept itself was strong. The casual rape of a comatose woman didn’t sit well with me at all, but if it’s horrible, then it’s horror, I guess.
Segment 3 – The Problem with Clones
Synopsis: A “skipper tracer” (a.k.a., a bounty hunter for people who skip court appearances) heads to the Horror Hotel to find Georgia, a government-experiment clone.
The Problem with Clones
The acting in this segment was the best yet, with the actress playing Georgia (along with her four clones and “mother”) the standout. I appreciated the “we all need glasses” foreshadowing and having the plot hinge on a character accurately reading something. Long pauses in between lines and general lack of quality set design seemed to drag this one down.
Segment 4 – Brain Robbers In Love
Synopsis: An old woman uses a top-secret machine to switch bodies with a young book editor to live a new life and do some corporate espionage.
I quite enjoyed this one! It felt the closest to the titular Twilight Zone, had the proper tone, and featured the old woman and young editor characters believably switching personalities. I even loved the campy bits like the “death spray.”
Segment 5 – Four Eyes
Synopsis: A disabled veteran meets with a man who comes to hire him as a hit man.
Four Eyes
This was a short segment and the weakest one in terms of plot. However, the cinematography was fantastic. Reminded me of the 80s high contrast, grainy look (e.g., First Blood).
Segment 6 – Life After Men
Synopsis: Man is obsolete in this post-apocalyptic woman’s world, and two women staying at the Horror Hotel experience a fright of their lives.
Life After Men
With the same director of photography as Four Eyes and the brilliant high concept, this short story is already elevated. Loved the lore they introduced—man is obsolete and now hunted to extinction; the “Server” being this virtual, totalitarian overlord; books and paper are outlawed. The same actress who played the clone in The Problem with Clones was the head Gestapo officer (for lack of a better term) and expertly played the menacing, devious, torture-happy role.
The underlying themes were refreshing. For example, the society depicted is homo-normative, and expressing positive sentiments about men is illegal. The campiness manifested in the props the characters utilized. The pencil sharpener being the torture device was hilarious, and the Blackberry phones being worn as personal-monitoring devices was too good.
2/5