What a terrifying and disturbing film. Despite the name, Hell House isn’t a horror movie, it is a documentary exploring the Trinity church (Assemblies of God) in Cedar Hill, Texas, and their yearly Halloween fundraiser called Hell House. This house of horror showcases hell and the church’s perception of what gets people there through reenactments of drug use, suicide, family violence, school shootings, abortion, and more. The film follows the families and youth among the congregation through auditions, set construction, rehearsals, and the opening night. Part of what makes this film so disturbing is that many of members of this congregation seem like very nice everyday people. For example, there is the soft-spoken father who is raising three children on his own, including a son with cerebral palsy and a teenage daughter who he hopes will get the part of the girl with the botched abortion.
No documentary is completely objective, subjectivity always comes in through the editing and what the filmmakers choose to show in the film, but this film makes an attempt to portray an objective stance. Unlike the Michael Moore style documentaries, this film has no running commentary. The filmmakers present a study of this church with their gospel of fear, while allowing you to make your own judgments.
No documentary is completely objective, subjectivity always comes in through the editing and what the filmmakers choose to show in the film, but this film makes an attempt to portray an objective stance. Unlike the Michael Moore style documentaries, this film has no running commentary. The filmmakers present a study of this church with their gospel of fear, while allowing you to make your own judgments.
1 comment:
This looks good. I just added it to our queue. Next year when it will finally get here, I will let you know what we think. It is number 236.
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