Hell Hole | A Monster Movie By The Adams Fam

I’m a little biased when it comes to the Adams family. Their style and flair scream that they epitomise the foundation of independent filmmaking roots. Covering often spiritual and coming-of-age-forward themes, The Adams family has spun yarns about Devils and witches in the horror niche. Their newest production, Hell Hole is a monster movie, with what some already describe as being doused in a deadpan tongue-in-cheek comedy. Having very much enjoyed their previous productions, I was taken aback when Hell Hole was not my new favorite horror movie.

Set in Serbia, I spent most of the opening act wondering why they chose an abandoned building in a different country. The story follows a bunch of Americans who incidentally dig up a soldier under the snow. Whatever riches they hope to find immediately gets shot down by local agencies. But sooner rather than later, a cocoon-like reanimated person housing a wriggly parasite begins spreading its tentacles into anything and everything it can.

The opening act felt like it took a little too long to get going. A first, however, I felt like the intentional slow-moving scenes helped in setting the pace. Just as I was beginning to wonder if I was wrong, a horse exploded in line with the first sighting of the monster.

Lots of Bloody Explosions in Hell Hole 2024

Torn between their future imagined pay day and a rampant body-exploding monster climbing its way out of bodies, the crew ends up in a bit of a pickle.

This particular parasite lends its prehistoric monster brain to being able to puppeteer its hosts. Like Venom or any other body snatcher, this adds a bit of fun to the parts whenever the cast stops talking.

In a crude anthem of monster movie staples, Hell Hole doesn’t stray far from the mold. Experts on all things biological as well as frozen soldier-logical recount the truckload of information given about the history and origins of the dreaded squishy thing that swims.

While the narrative plays out like care was taken, this doesn’t translate to the screen.

With a bigger budget and an obvious upscaling of available equipment, the amount of CGI mixed with practical effects was fun but wrecked the tension needed to pull it off. Tentacles appear out of all sorts of orifices sending waves of giggles instead of terror. Effects were hit-and-miss.

A Hole New Kind Of Hell

“It’s organic. Living tissue.”

Quote from the movie Hell Hole.

There should be a little more to it than that. However, there actually isn’t. Lulu Adams wrote Hell Hole. She also is usually featured in the cast. Toby Poser and John Adams are usually behind the pen, having written both Hellbender and The Deeper You Dig and Where the Devil Roams.

What Happened at the End of Hell Hole

Although ambiguous, the ending of Hell Hole gave the impression that the parasite had spread to beyond the borders of the camp. This means the rest of the World is also in danger.

With a tighter rein on the dialogue, Hell Hole could have been the fun and schlocky monster movie we wanted. But this ain’t it.

• Written by Lulu Adams
• Directed by John Adams, and Toby Poser.
• The cast of Hell Hole 2024 is John Adams, Maximum Portman, Anders Hove, Marko Filipovic, and Toby Poser.

“Are you saying there is a giant clam under our fu*king feet.”

Hell Hole Quote

Looking for another monster movie? There are werewolves in Blackout | Wendigo in Consumed | and tentacles in Beneath Us All to watch next.

Where to Watch

Hell Hole 2024 is streaming on:

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