The acting wasn't great, but the lead female was horrible. Maybe she was directed to be a ridiculous drama girl; in that case, she got the ridulous overacting part right. I thought this must be a first film for the high schoolers.
40 Reviews
Buttcheese Be Thy Name
tmccull5214 September 2020
Warning: Spoilers
I'm not going to waste time telling you that the acting is bad (it is), because this movie has other problems aside from that.
Our "hero", Devin, is moved from Chicago by his mother to BFE, Somewhere in the Sticks, as his parents are divorcing. His mother enrolls Devin in the local high school, and it turns out that his mother is old friends with the principal. There are some mild Sparks between Mommy dearest and the principal, and Devin is not pleased by this.
Devin meets Mick, who helps him open the combination lock on his locker. They exchange friendly small talk, and while they are chatting, they witness the loud, angry break-up between Skylar, Mick's friend, and her boyfriend, Jude. Jude dumps Skylar because she became pregnant by him, and subsequently had an abortion without talking to him about it first.
Skylar wants Jude back, and so she talks Devin and Mick into going to a local feature, a supposedly cursed cave. Devin's grandmother warned him to stay away from the cave, and of course, he doesn't listen. Skylar somehow believes that if she pays homage in the cave, she will be granted a wish. Her wish is for Jude to forgive her and take her back.
While they're in the cave, Mick takes a sword, for Skylar, and a teddy bear. At that point, something growls at them, and they flee. Later that night, Mick talks to his sister, Lea, about his feelings for Devin. Mick is gay and has the hots for Devin. Lea warns Mick not to get his hopes up, as she doesn't think that Devin is gay, but Mick harbors hope that Devin will reciprocate his feelings, anyway. Later still that same night, the entity from the cave comes to Mick's house and kills Lea in front of him. Mick is paralyzed by some mysterious force, and can't do anything to help Lea. The entity then claws marks into Mick's forearm, and leaves.
Meanwhile, Skylar takes to purloined sword to Jude, who accepts it, but still won't take her back. They argue heatedly, and Skylar goes back to Devin, who is watching from a discreet distance. They talk for a bit, exchange some personal information and history, and then go to Skylar's house, where they end up having sex.
Mick goes to Skylar's house and finds she and Devin basking in the afterglow, and he becomes upset and accuses Skylar of stealing Devin away before he had a chance to tell Devin about his feelings for him. And, oh yeah, his sister was murdered by a demonic entity before his eyes.
Devin tells Mick that he isn't gay, but still wants to be his friend, which let's Skylar off the hook. Our intrepid trio end up at Devin's grandmother's house, where they relate their visit to the cave, the theft of the items from the cave, and Lea's murder to Devin's granny and mom, who receive this report less than enthusiastically. After granny has a hissy fit, Devin's mom send our trip to see an old friend of hers who happens to be a psychic.
Long story short, the psychic tells them, particularly Devin, that they're doomed. The Cauchmar is coming for them because they stole things from him. She then tells them that the Cauchmar was once a mortal man, a local blacksmith who was thought to be a pillar of the community, but he wasn't. He was a serial killer who murdered young local women at his smithy. The psychic then gives the blacksmith's real name, John Paul Freeman, and tells our heroes that his nefarious deeds were discovered by the local citizenry. They Chase him into this cave, where he is forbidden to leave by the spell of a powerful witch. Freeman died in the cave, but in doing so, he found "the dead magic", whatever that is, and bound his soul to it. After this bonding, he gained the ability to leave the cave again, and has haunted it ever since. She then tells Devin that there is one slim hope. If he can find the Cauchmar's original blacksmithing tools, he can bind Freeman's spirit to them, and cast the Cauchmar into Hell. She then tells them to leave, as she fears that she has told them too much.
Devin, Skylar, and Mick go to to the local library to see what they can find out about Freeman, and any possible descendants. Mick finds a Robert Freeman, and our trip goes to visit with him. Unfortunately, Robert is a belligerent jerk, and drives them off of his property at the point of a shotgun. They leave empty-handed.
While our merry band is away, granny calls on a friend for help, a local priest, Father Dupuis. Dupuis shows up. The Cauchmar shows up, and Dupuis is powerless against him. Mom dies. Granny dies. Skylar dies. Mick dies. Father Dupuis dies. The Cauchmar is unstoppable, you see. Finally, Devin dies, taken by the Cauchmar.
Throughout the movie, a medium sized dog pops up sporadically. It shows up in the middle of the road when Devin and his mother arrive in town. It shows up again when Skylar, Mick, and Devin first visit the cave. It shows up again at the end of the movie, after everyone has been killed by the Cauchmar. The dog trots off behind some trees, and then a slender, dark-haired woman appears in the dog's place. Is this the witch who had originally bound the Cauchmar to the cave? Was she trying to keep Devin away from the cave while appearing as the dog throughout the movie? Hhmmm, could be. We are left to surmise this on our own. We are also left with the supposition that Lea's body was left in Mick's house for several days after her death, as he doesn't report her demise to the authorities, and we don't see him burying her, himself.
Yes, this is a stupid, stupid movie, chocked full of the same stupid decisions and inane, ill-advised actions of the doomed characters in every stupid horror movie. Good is helpless before evil, the demonic villain is more powerful than God Almighty Himself, and everyone dies. It isn't even mildly original, or entertaining.
Do yourself a favor and pass on this one. I wish that I had.
Our "hero", Devin, is moved from Chicago by his mother to BFE, Somewhere in the Sticks, as his parents are divorcing. His mother enrolls Devin in the local high school, and it turns out that his mother is old friends with the principal. There are some mild Sparks between Mommy dearest and the principal, and Devin is not pleased by this.
Devin meets Mick, who helps him open the combination lock on his locker. They exchange friendly small talk, and while they are chatting, they witness the loud, angry break-up between Skylar, Mick's friend, and her boyfriend, Jude. Jude dumps Skylar because she became pregnant by him, and subsequently had an abortion without talking to him about it first.
Skylar wants Jude back, and so she talks Devin and Mick into going to a local feature, a supposedly cursed cave. Devin's grandmother warned him to stay away from the cave, and of course, he doesn't listen. Skylar somehow believes that if she pays homage in the cave, she will be granted a wish. Her wish is for Jude to forgive her and take her back.
While they're in the cave, Mick takes a sword, for Skylar, and a teddy bear. At that point, something growls at them, and they flee. Later that night, Mick talks to his sister, Lea, about his feelings for Devin. Mick is gay and has the hots for Devin. Lea warns Mick not to get his hopes up, as she doesn't think that Devin is gay, but Mick harbors hope that Devin will reciprocate his feelings, anyway. Later still that same night, the entity from the cave comes to Mick's house and kills Lea in front of him. Mick is paralyzed by some mysterious force, and can't do anything to help Lea. The entity then claws marks into Mick's forearm, and leaves.
Meanwhile, Skylar takes to purloined sword to Jude, who accepts it, but still won't take her back. They argue heatedly, and Skylar goes back to Devin, who is watching from a discreet distance. They talk for a bit, exchange some personal information and history, and then go to Skylar's house, where they end up having sex.
Mick goes to Skylar's house and finds she and Devin basking in the afterglow, and he becomes upset and accuses Skylar of stealing Devin away before he had a chance to tell Devin about his feelings for him. And, oh yeah, his sister was murdered by a demonic entity before his eyes.
Devin tells Mick that he isn't gay, but still wants to be his friend, which let's Skylar off the hook. Our intrepid trio end up at Devin's grandmother's house, where they relate their visit to the cave, the theft of the items from the cave, and Lea's murder to Devin's granny and mom, who receive this report less than enthusiastically. After granny has a hissy fit, Devin's mom send our trip to see an old friend of hers who happens to be a psychic.
Long story short, the psychic tells them, particularly Devin, that they're doomed. The Cauchmar is coming for them because they stole things from him. She then tells them that the Cauchmar was once a mortal man, a local blacksmith who was thought to be a pillar of the community, but he wasn't. He was a serial killer who murdered young local women at his smithy. The psychic then gives the blacksmith's real name, John Paul Freeman, and tells our heroes that his nefarious deeds were discovered by the local citizenry. They Chase him into this cave, where he is forbidden to leave by the spell of a powerful witch. Freeman died in the cave, but in doing so, he found "the dead magic", whatever that is, and bound his soul to it. After this bonding, he gained the ability to leave the cave again, and has haunted it ever since. She then tells Devin that there is one slim hope. If he can find the Cauchmar's original blacksmithing tools, he can bind Freeman's spirit to them, and cast the Cauchmar into Hell. She then tells them to leave, as she fears that she has told them too much.
Devin, Skylar, and Mick go to to the local library to see what they can find out about Freeman, and any possible descendants. Mick finds a Robert Freeman, and our trip goes to visit with him. Unfortunately, Robert is a belligerent jerk, and drives them off of his property at the point of a shotgun. They leave empty-handed.
While our merry band is away, granny calls on a friend for help, a local priest, Father Dupuis. Dupuis shows up. The Cauchmar shows up, and Dupuis is powerless against him. Mom dies. Granny dies. Skylar dies. Mick dies. Father Dupuis dies. The Cauchmar is unstoppable, you see. Finally, Devin dies, taken by the Cauchmar.
Throughout the movie, a medium sized dog pops up sporadically. It shows up in the middle of the road when Devin and his mother arrive in town. It shows up again when Skylar, Mick, and Devin first visit the cave. It shows up again at the end of the movie, after everyone has been killed by the Cauchmar. The dog trots off behind some trees, and then a slender, dark-haired woman appears in the dog's place. Is this the witch who had originally bound the Cauchmar to the cave? Was she trying to keep Devin away from the cave while appearing as the dog throughout the movie? Hhmmm, could be. We are left to surmise this on our own. We are also left with the supposition that Lea's body was left in Mick's house for several days after her death, as he doesn't report her demise to the authorities, and we don't see him burying her, himself.
Yes, this is a stupid, stupid movie, chocked full of the same stupid decisions and inane, ill-advised actions of the doomed characters in every stupid horror movie. Good is helpless before evil, the demonic villain is more powerful than God Almighty Himself, and everyone dies. It isn't even mildly original, or entertaining.
Do yourself a favor and pass on this one. I wish that I had.
Was this a parody?
fssrkirstanlmt13 September 2020
This was as terrible as a mayonnaise sandwich. Bland, boring, and nonsensical. I just kept waiting for the guys from mystery science theater to start making jokes, but, alas, this was not the case. The casting was bizarre. The acting was like a bad high school theater audition. There was absolutely no plot, every scene falls flat. The "monster" looked like something the first eliminated contestant from Face Off would create. It made me sad, frustrated, and bored. Sorry guys, was the director even present? God Awful.
Worst Acting Ever
peterDM-3038014 October 2020
Anyone who rated over 5 must be part of this POS
cin_janssens20 September 2020
OmG this was hilariously bad. Had the most disgusting main female character who of course had a generic millennial name like Skylar. Sorry other Skylars that are actually cool people. I love how somebody said it had an "80's vibe" because of the Stranger Things music ripoff? The catholic priest didn't even have a crucifix...? Hahahah staaahhppp. Also has the most abrupt ending as if they were just like how do we end this pile of garbage?
OMG
rockofcarol22 September 2020
Just. No.
dana-kellish20 September 2020
Are these film makers serious?
kardosma25 January 2021
Why does every second "horror" movie (and I use that term very loosely here) need to have at least one - if not many more - aggravating characters that I would happily beat with a baseball bat myself? Why can't we have decent characters that we get invested in?
They don't cost extra, for crying out loud. :(
The main blonde character is not only constantly angry, shouting her lines, has the worst case of resting b*tch face even when she's trying to pretend to care about her so called bff, and has the personality of a bear with its paw stuck in a bee hive, she's downright stupid too.
Sigh. Don't even get me started on the mother....
Watch at your own peril. My eyes rolled so much I almost sprained something.
The main blonde character is not only constantly angry, shouting her lines, has the worst case of resting b*tch face even when she's trying to pretend to care about her so called bff, and has the personality of a bear with its paw stuck in a bee hive, she's downright stupid too.
Sigh. Don't even get me started on the mother....
Watch at your own peril. My eyes rolled so much I almost sprained something.
Brutal Acting...
Deafy the Timid Diver21 September 2020
Admittedly, I did not watch the entire movie. I made it about 30 minutes in and had to stop. The acting is SO distractingly bad, it was the only thing I could focus on. The Skylar actor was the worst of them all...pretty lady, but she needs to get a refund from whatever acting school that she attended. Would not recommend this movie :-/
Garbage Fire
draftdubya11 September 2020
10 Stars!!
KolobosRexx27 November 2020
...But honestly lol. The movie is in offensively mediocre, with pretty awful acting, and a "meh" plot, that kind of tries... Its only True highlight is that the gal playing Skyler is a totally hottie! It's also nice to see modern teens being played as believably clueless and dopey, rather than the unrealistic "worldly and introspective, 4 years of college" teens that shows like "Stranger Things" falsely perpetrate, like the are the norm rather than a rare exception!
So bad it's good.
samuelhamilton-2446822 September 2020
This is a spectacularly bad movie that is bad enough it's fun to watch. There is nothing that doesn't fall flat on it's face here, from the dialogue, to acting, to the many many plot holes and dead ends. Watch with friends for cheap and easy laughs.
TERRIBLE ACTORS TO SAY THE LEAST
mybusinessmail4 October 2020
Ehhhh....
haskel-729518 November 2020
Bad script + bad acting + amateur director = this "movie". Good lord. I've seen worse, and at least there is a plot of sorts, but this is amateur hour. A few decently executed scenes keeps it from being a total waste of time, but this is NOT worth wasting time on.
Not what I expected
dangahigh13 January 2021
Really Bad
jadgardiner11 June 2021
The Best Part Was...OH WAIT THERE WAS NONE
katherinebrastow11 August 2021
Warning: Spoilers
The only positive thing I can say about this movie is that everybody made time in their schedules to come together and make it - and maybe we'd be better off if that hadn't happened.
The acting was atrocious for most of the film. I have to give the actors credit - they tried... most of them did, anyway. There were a few seriously bad actors cast in major roles. I haven't googled her yet, but something tells me she has some porno experience in her background. That's not a bad thing on its own. Why do I mention it? Because the only scene in which she contributed anything to the emotional life of these characters was when she went from zero to clothes-off in .9 seconds. I mean, what was the poor guy supposed to do? He was trying to make it look like a love connection, but all she did was shove her breasts in his face until it became a tug of war to get her face back down to kiss her.
Other than Skylar, a lot of the bad acting can be traced to horrific writing. Even the best actor can only do so much when the script they're working with doesn't make any sense. I believe these guys tried to string together the fragmented horror cliches as best they could. Because that's all the writer/director gave them. It's clear he had certain moments he wanted to hit, and when you ask any kind of question about this movie, the answer is because the director was playing Horror Bingo and was trying to hit as many marks as he could, no matter how bad that made the movie.
For example: Q: Why did the two boys disappear when the demon's modus operandi is to follow people home and do the damage there?
A: Because the genius 17-year-old had to have something to make a connection to so he could seem like the "smart one" for making any type of connection at all.
Q: Why was Mick suddenly gay?
A: Because he had to have a reason to be horrified to find the other two naked together. Oh, and maybe he had to have a motivation for stealing something from the cave?
I wish that this production had been about the technical aspects of making a movie - I wish the makeup and special effects were really convincing and made me forget that the whole thing was in shambles. It didn't. The blood was campy and unrealistic (to a degree that can't be excused by a PG-13 rating), the bad guy's appearance didn't make sense ("this black guy was a murderer" and he's WHITE AS A GHOST???), and it was clear the crew was taking shortcuts by using wide shots to save time and not backing up the audio in even an amateur studio setting.
I nearly ragequit when I saw the "dead fetus" in the crib. You think you're so progressive because you made the black guy gay? Try ass-backwards for personifying an aborted fetus as what was clearly meant to be the leftovers of a miscarriage. HINT: THAT'S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE. There were many things about this movie to be offended by, but that one gets my vote.
If I were one of the actors on-set, I'd be begging to have my name taken out of the credits.
Also, can someone get the writer to stop writing his own taglines? I should have known not to go for it when the tag line took up a whole lot of time saying absolutely nothing. I bet this is his synopsis, too. News flash: if you can't communicate it in the film, no one's going to read the synopsis on IMDB.
The acting was atrocious for most of the film. I have to give the actors credit - they tried... most of them did, anyway. There were a few seriously bad actors cast in major roles. I haven't googled her yet, but something tells me she has some porno experience in her background. That's not a bad thing on its own. Why do I mention it? Because the only scene in which she contributed anything to the emotional life of these characters was when she went from zero to clothes-off in .9 seconds. I mean, what was the poor guy supposed to do? He was trying to make it look like a love connection, but all she did was shove her breasts in his face until it became a tug of war to get her face back down to kiss her.
Other than Skylar, a lot of the bad acting can be traced to horrific writing. Even the best actor can only do so much when the script they're working with doesn't make any sense. I believe these guys tried to string together the fragmented horror cliches as best they could. Because that's all the writer/director gave them. It's clear he had certain moments he wanted to hit, and when you ask any kind of question about this movie, the answer is because the director was playing Horror Bingo and was trying to hit as many marks as he could, no matter how bad that made the movie.
For example: Q: Why did the two boys disappear when the demon's modus operandi is to follow people home and do the damage there?
A: Because the genius 17-year-old had to have something to make a connection to so he could seem like the "smart one" for making any type of connection at all.
Q: Why was Mick suddenly gay?
A: Because he had to have a reason to be horrified to find the other two naked together. Oh, and maybe he had to have a motivation for stealing something from the cave?
I wish that this production had been about the technical aspects of making a movie - I wish the makeup and special effects were really convincing and made me forget that the whole thing was in shambles. It didn't. The blood was campy and unrealistic (to a degree that can't be excused by a PG-13 rating), the bad guy's appearance didn't make sense ("this black guy was a murderer" and he's WHITE AS A GHOST???), and it was clear the crew was taking shortcuts by using wide shots to save time and not backing up the audio in even an amateur studio setting.
I nearly ragequit when I saw the "dead fetus" in the crib. You think you're so progressive because you made the black guy gay? Try ass-backwards for personifying an aborted fetus as what was clearly meant to be the leftovers of a miscarriage. HINT: THAT'S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE. There were many things about this movie to be offended by, but that one gets my vote.
If I were one of the actors on-set, I'd be begging to have my name taken out of the credits.
Also, can someone get the writer to stop writing his own taglines? I should have known not to go for it when the tag line took up a whole lot of time saying absolutely nothing. I bet this is his synopsis, too. News flash: if you can't communicate it in the film, no one's going to read the synopsis on IMDB.
So What Did You Do In That Cave, Boy?????
wandernn1-81-68327424 September 2020
Warning: Spoilers
So Mother and Son are moving away from DAD, who according to Momma is shacked up with a F^%#ING Harlot!!!! Son is not pleased about the move. Not pleased AT ALL.
And that's how this movie begins. Moving into a new House with Grandma. And then dude goes to school, and meets a couple of new people. Oh and a couple kids are missing. And a girl at school says there's this cave outside of town which grants wishes and she wants to go there, and new kid and new friends are supposed to go with her.
Oh and then random deputy goes in the cave and hears kids in there and he's like hey kids come out here and stop playing but then he's like suddenly on the ground and getting dragged off.
-1 Star for hokey deputy dragging in cave
Back to Skyler who wants her friend and new kid to go to this cave with her so she can wish. And after a midnight coaxing by Friend to new dude, the 3 embark to the cave after school the next day. So Skyler lied about why she wanted to come to the cave. She confesses this of course INSIDE the cave.
Later on when Dude is back home, his MOTHER gets all in his business while professing to be 'minding my own business' ROFL. WHAT??
-1 Star for Mom Being in Dude''s business and saying she's minding her own business....
Okay and it comes out that the 'best friend' is gay, when he's talking to his sister about this new dude at school. And then that night there's some dark cloaked figure that kills his sister in his room? And he's like paralyzed on his couch that he sleeps on and cant get up and do anything about it??? And then we go to the next day and Skyler and new dude are walking and talking about how best friend is not around? Where could he be? Wait they established a while back that they all lived next to each other. Girl lived next door to new dude and best friend lived across the street. How does best friend not showing up and sister being killed go unnoticed when it's happening across the street????
-1 Star for stealth killing across the street!!!!
Anyways when Best friend does show up, he talks about how his sister got killed and his arm is all torn up. Then the white kids go off and start making out on the couch!!! Boy both of those actors could use some sunlight!!! But of course the 'sex' scene has no sex, and no nudity. LOL , best friend walks in and appears angry because the straight kids had sex??? Like best friend was hoping new dude was gay!! And Skyler she stole best friends man!!!!
-1 Star this movie is OVER. LOL couldn't make it thru it...what a horrific pile of dung. 1/10
And that's how this movie begins. Moving into a new House with Grandma. And then dude goes to school, and meets a couple of new people. Oh and a couple kids are missing. And a girl at school says there's this cave outside of town which grants wishes and she wants to go there, and new kid and new friends are supposed to go with her.
Oh and then random deputy goes in the cave and hears kids in there and he's like hey kids come out here and stop playing but then he's like suddenly on the ground and getting dragged off.
-1 Star for hokey deputy dragging in cave
Back to Skyler who wants her friend and new kid to go to this cave with her so she can wish. And after a midnight coaxing by Friend to new dude, the 3 embark to the cave after school the next day. So Skyler lied about why she wanted to come to the cave. She confesses this of course INSIDE the cave.
Later on when Dude is back home, his MOTHER gets all in his business while professing to be 'minding my own business' ROFL. WHAT??
-1 Star for Mom Being in Dude''s business and saying she's minding her own business....
Okay and it comes out that the 'best friend' is gay, when he's talking to his sister about this new dude at school. And then that night there's some dark cloaked figure that kills his sister in his room? And he's like paralyzed on his couch that he sleeps on and cant get up and do anything about it??? And then we go to the next day and Skyler and new dude are walking and talking about how best friend is not around? Where could he be? Wait they established a while back that they all lived next to each other. Girl lived next door to new dude and best friend lived across the street. How does best friend not showing up and sister being killed go unnoticed when it's happening across the street????
-1 Star for stealth killing across the street!!!!
Anyways when Best friend does show up, he talks about how his sister got killed and his arm is all torn up. Then the white kids go off and start making out on the couch!!! Boy both of those actors could use some sunlight!!! But of course the 'sex' scene has no sex, and no nudity. LOL , best friend walks in and appears angry because the straight kids had sex??? Like best friend was hoping new dude was gay!! And Skyler she stole best friends man!!!!
-1 Star this movie is OVER. LOL couldn't make it thru it...what a horrific pile of dung. 1/10
And I thought Tara Reid was the worse actress of all time.
pooch-686836 January 2022
Warning: Spoilers
I'm a big fan of horror and I really enjoyed this one!!!
lguy-3250914 September 2020
I thought this was great horror movie. It had great elements of horror, scares and enjoyed the story.
It was great to see another movie by Taylor Ri'Chard. He has really grown as an artist and could tell he pushed the limits on this one.
If you're a fan of horror and great story telling highly recommend! (:
It was great to see another movie by Taylor Ri'Chard. He has really grown as an artist and could tell he pushed the limits on this one.
If you're a fan of horror and great story telling highly recommend! (:
Plot ok
savanna-2350421 July 2021
Makes you shut your eyes
gmoney-6059216 August 2021
This movie will make you shut your eyes not from fear but from the absolutely horrible acting. Seems like a movie that some college kids went out and made on a whim over a weekend. I only gave it three stars because the people involved actually kept straight faces saying the lines.
There's no reason to watch this
kevin_robbins21 October 2021
Hallowed Be Thy Name (2020) is another independent horror movie I watched on Amazon Prime. The storyline follows a teenager whose parents are going through a divorce and he and his mother move to a small town in Georgia with his grandmother. He makes two new friends at his new school and takes a hike to an infamous wishing cave known for good and bad things by the locals. After going there and making wishes they stir an ancient demon that may make their lives worse not better. This movie is directed by Taylor Ri'chard (The Final Project) and stars Collin Shephard (Rules to Rule), Alissa Shaye Hale (Bound), Zander Krenger (Point Man) and Fiona McQuinn (Roots). The acting in this is very bad. The makeup, masks and demonic voices are also terrible. There really aren't any good kill scenes, blood splatter or gore. The relationships between "friends" with how they talk to eachother and interact are really awkward. Not much about the writing and acting seemed natural. Even the sex scenes aren't well done. Overall, there's no reason to watch this. I'd score this a 1/10 and recommend
skipping it.
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