Click here for the review of The Innkeepers

SPOILERS must be tagged with the "SPOILER" tag!

did you see(or like) House of the Devil?

was excited to see this, but have heard from a number of people that the comedic elements play too big an aspect in the film(which the trailer doesn't hint at at all)

The comedic elements don't dilute the suspense of the film. The humor is low-key and allows the viewer to become invested in the characters. I would say the film is almost like "Clerks" meets the "Shining." James' review is pretty on target. The major reason why this film is "small" is that you're expecting it to build to a major revelation regarding a secondary character, which the movie doesn't fulfill. Regarding characters acting dumb:




I think this movie seems to have been made for the on-demand format. If I were to see this on the big screen, I would probably feel unsatisfied, but on the small screen it is a great way to spend an hour and forty minutes on a weekend evening.

That's it.

Did the film paint Paxton's character as one that is curious to the point of recklessness? If not, then that is indeed a disappointing moment.

Actually, I don't think it was dumb, and my following explanation explains it.

House of the Devil was a great horror movie. If "The Innkeepers" is as good (or better) than "House of the Devil", I definitely have to see this.

To respond:

Agreed.

I saw this through On Demand early in the year, and I wanted to like it much more than I actually did. There's a lot in the film to admire; the characters are memorable, the direction is well-handled, and there is a nice sense of slow, creeping tension present throughout most of the running length. My main problem is one that also plagued The House Of The Devil; mainly, there is a large amount of build-up to surprisingly little payoff (It doesn't help that I watched the trailer beforehand, which literally gives away all the legitimate scares). Like The House Of The Devil, a significant amount of time is spent gearing up the audience for the moment when everything explodes, but instead the film ends in an anticlimax.

With that said, Ti West is definitely an interesting filmmaker; I really appreciate his more classical approach to horror cinema, and I think eventually he is going to make a really great horror film. The Innkeepers falls a little short, but there's still enough strong material there to make it worth seeing. 6/10.

Agree with this. It's a major problem with the trailer, which should not be watched before seeing the movie. In fact, the trailer includes the final moment of the film. Out of context, it doesn't stand out, but I was surprised to see it included.

The trailer for Quarantine(the REC remake) had the exact same problem, hell the image on the poster was of the final scene in the film.

I disagree. Horror/thrillers that are done well (as this one is) and comedies that are actually funny, are two of the genres that benefit from seeing with an audience. The crowd reaction definitely enhances the experience, IMO.

While horror movies can work well in a crowd, like paranormal activity, I think "The Innkeepers" will try the patience of a mainstream audience. Have you ever sat in a movie theater where you can feel audience around you shifting in their seats?

I generally avoid comedies in theaters. I always feel that laughter occurs reflexively whenever the audience laughs, even though on second thought I often don't find the material that funny. For me, It's easier to determine the quality of the humor at home.