Return to Horror Hotel

source: Return to Horror Hotel

A collection of short films set generally in motel packaged together into a feature-length anthology. This here was a truly terrible anthology effort. This is mostly due to the scattershot approach where it's impossible to tell what's going on here. Rather than present a clear, well-defined focus to the stories and what's going on, this one whips us around chaotically and without warning to these random people coming to a random motel that you can't tell if its set at the same one or just motels in general in a way that never allows for much in the way of competent storytelling. There's nothing about who these people are or what they're doing before coming to the motel or a motel or what the different thematic stories come from. There's also the problematic issue in the technical merits of some of the shorts never appearing to get together in a cohesive whole. That there's plenty of transitions showing each of the segments being chopped down with the same fade-to-black, fade-in setups that are haphazardly edited together which makes for a cheap-looking effort. That carries over into the overall presentation where this completely misses out on editing out the opening credits from the shorts, looking exactly like these were gathered together and given the introductions to sell the format. Even without the wraparound sections that give this one a point and purpose, the presentation and production really undo this one significantly. The chosen shorts here are also exceptionally bad. The first segment "Sleep Tight" has a creepy premise and some chilling imagery about the gnawed-on bodies featuring some great gore, but is so scattershot to pay off as the shift in focus to the various people at the motel are so episodic in nature it's hard to tell what they're here for. The second one, "Guillotine" is predictable, underdeveloped and not scary at all with no horror payoff to anything that happens. "No Time for Love" has a somewhat dark twist but doesn't go anywhere close to horror until then with a half-crocked love story taking up the running time. Finally, "Houdini's Hand" has a great premise involving the stolen hand coming to life but its way too clichéd and doesn't offer up any kind of surprise. The few positives here are related to a few select areas in the general setup for each of the stories. Having a motel infested with carnivorous bed-bugs that comes for a family staying there could've been fun as this has a great setup, while a woman fighting over a special charm is a decent enough effort. A cursed motel room that ages inhabitants are various intervals could've been a blast s is the idea of a disembodied hand running amuck in a hotel room which means this has some great setups in theory. As there are no real flaws in the production of these shorts as they all look incredibly professional, it's what works here but gets washed out by the massive flaws on display. Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Graphic Violence.

Being a big fan of the Italian anthologies of the 60s (Bava, Freda and such) this was refreshing, we need more movies like these, campy and pure entertainment, a real fun ride I didn't want to end! Highly recommended

What an interesting and unique world! This film has a black mirror twilight zone vibe to it. Only theres lot more humor which I really liked. It seems like the movie has been split up into a few pieces which is a very interesting choice. It really took me away to another world! The film was very fun and everyone's performances were top notch! I really enjoyed this very unique world that was built by the writers and director! If your looking for a funny syfy horror check this out!!

Good horror comedy movie. I laughed out loud several times. If you like Tyler Perry movies you will enjoy this. Made me want to check in that hotel. Again a fun time!

This was a very cool movie to watch. It had a very unique feel to it in an odd slightly alternative quirky way. It made it for an interesting watch. The imagery and scenery have symbolism and meaning and add to the ludacris situation all the characters find themselves in. Well worth the watch.

This is an American portmanteau featuring four tales connected by the titular hotel. The tone is slightly elevated, not realistic, and the characters are not unlike those found in a John Waters film, a Jerry Springer episode, or a documentary by Ulrich Seidl. I warmed to the focus on the grotesque, and appreciated the moody, gel-happy lighting. The hotel of the title is of the Bates Motel school (not flashy or 5-star), but it serves as a solid launching pad for the various tales. This is not a horror film to be taken terribly seriously; it revels in its own excesses, and ludicrous concepts, and pitches its performances at a level in concert with its tone. For me, my favorite story was the third one, which involved a bunch of lost submariners, although the first tale, which focuses on decay and bugs, arrested my attention. Well worth catching.

I like compilation movies especially horror ones. We Brits excelled at this stuff in the 60s and 70s. The key to them is have a good story and have some people in them who can act. This failed on both counts. The cast made John Claude Van Damme seem like Laurence Olivier A bag of carrots could have out acted this lot.

A complete waste of time, yes. However, at least it was short. I don't know about the original, but 'Return to Horror Hotel' is nothing but a cheap knockoff of a Full Moon production or a Troma film without any of the cult movie charm. This movie fails so hard that it's actually kind of funny in some areas. Still, no excuse for bad acting and unoriginality. I recommend staying away from this one, as well as the first movie. From first impressions alone, I imagine that the first 'Horror Hotel' is just as terrible, if not worse than this travesty.

First act was interesting, 30 minutes. It ended like "what's this sh**, I'm out", rushed to go to the next act. The 3 following acts, barely last 15 minutes each and are all disapponting and unfinished. And the acting is awful. I wasted my time...