Hallowed (2005) Poster

(2005)

User Reviews

Review this title
10 Reviews
Sort by:
Filter by Rating:
4/10
a review from a regular reviewer
Billybob-Shatner1 June 2006
Warning: Spoilers
I'm not a slasher fan, and I wasn't involved in the production... I rented it from Netflix out of simple curiosity. Well... I have seen worse.

I think the director does a reasonable job at creating an eerie tone, and the concept is kind of interesting, but there's just to much to overlook to recommend this to any casual viewer.

To say the story is simple is an understatement. Too little character development, no surprises, and its just too generic for my tastes. NOW, I'm judging this against much bigger budgeted movies (in general). And I know its quite hard to make a low budget film work, and in general there are very few films of this budgetary range I'd recommend. Now compared to other films in the budgetary range? Which I'm assuming is about 50K or more (estimated 300K my butt), it's not bad. You can do a lot worse. It moves at a good pace.

The acting is pretty iffy, and the music gets really over done in a lot of places. But I will say, there is one solidly acted, solidly directed, solidly written scene toward the climax where the killer and his priest come face to face. If the filmmakers had more scenes at the level of that scene, I think they would've had something for a wider audience.

as is... for slasher fans only!
4 out of 4 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
1/10
Don't waste your time on this dog
bill-232818 April 2009
Warning: Spoilers
I got it for 1.00 at a garage sale, and hopefully I can sucker some one else into buying it at my next garage sale.

I can only hope this was a student film, and that it got an F. The acting, and by that I'm being kind, was some of the worst I've seen, the special effects were nothing that any competent 3rd grader couldn't have done better at and nobody killed in this dog screams when being impaled with garden trowels or butcher knives.

The directer could have used enough money to try second or third takes and a few dollars spent hiring actors, or paying for acting lessons for the friends he hired, would have gone a long way.

Avoid this mess at all costs, it has no redeeming aspects.
0 out of 1 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
10/10
Impressive, considering
smithslost5 March 2006
I caught this film in New York and have to say that for what I was expecting I was pleasantly surprised.

As with any slasher, the story isn't overly complicated, although it does make you (the audience) ask a few questions, and unfortunately (or fortunately however you look at it) some of those questions aren't revealed. My guess is that the director did it that way on purpose and maybe the DVD will have all the answers.

Most of the actors were believable, with the exception of the dude playing Gabriel who was stale and weak, but the picture/audio/lighting and music were all very pro. There are some creepy moments in the film and a few classic pop out scenes as well. It's definitely worth checking out.
17 out of 19 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
7/10
Cool Horror Flick!
billybradford0612 March 2006
I remember seeing the tagline "Say Your Prayers" which got me to give it a whirl. When I saw it last month, I really dug it! This reminds you of a great 1980's era horror flick with routine scare tactics, but done with good acting and a fast paced style. I almost didn't see it when I heard it was compared to "Halloween" which didn't work for me, I'm glad I made the trip to the city to check it out though as I found it to be better than Halloween. What I liked most were the killing scenes, which are really freaky and have a no holds barred style to them. I liked Cassie and her friends a lot as well as Father Jacob who was kind of freaky to me. Also, Gabriel is a good sick & twisted relentless killer...If you like 1980's era horror films, you will most likely enjoy this film. A good old-fashioned horror film that does what it intends to do: scare you.
16 out of 18 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
9/10
A Classic Slasher
tcallyou14 May 2006
This film was definitely worth the wait. I've been looking forward to the DVD for several months and now I am glad to have bought it. Hallowed is kind of like all the old 80's flicks with an interesting twist. Gabriel gets messed up in the head after seeing his mom blown away by his dad and then grows up believing he's been sent from Lord All Mighty to kill. There are some cool pop out moments and times where you crack up in laughter. Seriously, this is my kind of horror and I think more should be made like this. The pace of this film does seem to zoom by fast so pay attention, cause it's over before you know it. But if you're like me and like the classics of Halloween/Nightmare/Friday, and the rest of those old slasher killer movies, this is a must see.
14 out of 18 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
7/10
A Nice Attempt
hvre894656424 June 2006
Okay, so there are more than a few reasons to hate this film. The main reason would be that the film single-handedly copies "Halloween" which is the genre's classic masterpiece. But do the filmmakers actually copy it like other teen-slashers such as "Scream" or even worse "I Know What You Did Last Summer" and "Urban Legend" No, they really don't. The villain in "Hallowed" is definitely a unique character who doesn't hide behind an overused mask. In fact, his appearance isn't even intimidating. One look at him and you'll say; "I'd kill that religious idiot." But the fact that the filmmakers created Gabriel to go after vulnerable victims was genius... yeah I said it.

Let's face it, Halloween is still arguably the best slasher film of all time and has influenced a lot of other horror films... some good, some bad. "Hallowed" can't be faulted for paying homage to this great film and personally, I think the filmmakers did a great job at doing it in good taste rather than another comical spoof. It's well worth watching.
0 out of 0 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
8/10
My kind of slasher
fhgbiurhgt7624 May 2006
A little different horror movie than the in-your-face brutal slashers as Saw & Hostel (which doesn't do it for me) Hallowed delivered what it promised... a retrospect horror film. If I didn't know any better, I'd say this film was released back in the 80's. The story was simple; there was suspense, some scares and even a little blood. No heads were ripped off and no flesh-eating zombies. Just a scary tale about a disturbed man terrorizing a small California city.

Of course the film isn't perfect. I rated it a solid "8" because it held my attention with great camera movement, awesome lighting and an eerie soundtrack, but some of the performances were less than perfect but you could tell the director did a good job despite the obvious lack of $$$.
11 out of 15 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
7/10
I've Seen Worse
herbvgywer7561218 June 2006
I thought for sure I was going to regret buying this film after the DVD caught my eye on the shelf of my video store, but I took the gamble anyway being the horror fanatic that I am. First of all, I recently bought Harvest of Fear and Heebie Jeebies (other indie horror films at the same level) and hated both of them. Hallowed, although I didn't love or anything, did hold my interest and by the end of the film I found myself thinking it wasn't that bad. The acting needed to be better, but I thought the filmmakers did a decent job and the music was great in my opinion. So all in all Hallowed is a decent horror film and I'm glad I got a copy.
0 out of 1 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
9/10
Hallowed on Hallows Eve
heckasteady14 November 2005
Or so it was supposed to have been. Changes of screening times & dates were merely the icing on the cake of problems that the baja film festival had. Needless to say I was very disappointed in how they handled the event. However, this comment is for Hallowed and to the makers of this film whom I chatted with that night. You asked for my opinion so here it is.

First of all, I love all kinds of films and don't judge them by budget or format. If it's a well made film then I'm happy. Hallowed really caught my attention from the beginning. The slow crawl through the "secret locations" (I won't spoil it) was creepy. The flow of the film was decent though there were many moments that were just too dark. I'll take the director's word for it that it was the festivals poor projector. Still, I found myself caught up in the story and wanted to stick around to see what happened next. The music and especially sound effects were perfection. If there was one element that needed improving, it was the killer's stale acting. I could not tell if he was speaking like that on purpose or if he really needs more acting classes.

Nonetheless, Hallowed is definitely a "must-see" in my book. I wish it and the makers much success.
10 out of 14 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
10/10
Good "B" Movie quality...
mike3148728 August 2006
What sets hallowed apart from other films I have seen that could be considered a "B" movie? Well for starters, it overuses every cliché in the book, and does it with class. The killings? they're cheesy beyond belief, and the ending? WOW is all I can say. I laughed, I jumped, I thought, and I trembled. The film was shot on digital, which worked perfect for the film because of the flexibility it offers. Deep down I know it wanted to be serious, but it was so hard to do so. The dialogue invoked chuckles, the acting was stiff, and the plot, well lets say you could eliminate some walking for some solid prologue and epilogue space. BUT. That said, I enjoyed watching this film from start to finish because I expected nothing and received a pure gem. I would recommend this film to anyone who likes horror or "B" movies.
2 out of 3 found this helpful. Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink

See also

Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews


Recently Viewed