Quick Reviews: They Found Hell (2015)

Somehow I don't think that this is going to be one of those good journeys of self-discovery.  Let's see...

After a confusing Cold Open (a flash forward, I think), we see some people working a Matter Transporter.  One end sends a watch and the other...is suddenly in the middle of a firestorm.

Oops.

When the rest of the group show up, they find the pair missing.  The new Crater then sucks them in!

The group now end up in dark, desolate land where hope goes to die.

No, it's not any place in Utah.  It's...well, Hell.

The place is not friendly, since the dark hybrid of those Gamma Dogs and the Lickers from Resident Evil are on the prowl.  Bad doggies!

The trip through Hell is a rough one, since they all get separated, scare and tortured.  Even worse, they rip off Silent Hill.  You demonic bastards!

As the danger and terror rises, will our Heroes escape Hades?  Will the Film commit to how Hell actually works?  Will Satan have Dick Cheney up his ass like that one Dante's Inferno Film I saw?

To find out, watch the Film.

This is thankfully not Hellish.  To be fair, it isn't great either.  Right off the bat, I have a pretty simple problem.  Within the first 10 minutes, we meet all 8 (or 9) Characters and they are in Hell.  I should be happy that a Film isn't dragging its feet (like Tomorrowland), but this one goes too far.  I only watched it a few days ago and I can't remember any of these Characters' names!  The Film has many memorable moments- just not memorable Characters.  The Acting here isn't really bad, but nobody stands out all that much either.  The good stuff: most of what you see in Hell.  That sentence will probably never be uttered again!  While it is not all original (as noted above), it all looks pretty nice.  I will say this: the jumping around Hell is a bit much.  I get that they wanted the Characters split up, but the locales are all over the place.  I think it is supposed to be creative that they sometimes appear outside, for example, but it mostly feels like a way to be cheaper.  That leads to something else: the Tone.  Shockingly, a Film about people being killed in Hell is not upbeat.  I get that- I just wanted a little balance.  This is pretty much about hope going to do, until it kind of cops out a little towards the end.  All in all though, a unique take the merging of Sci-Fi and Horror.  This could lead to a really good Movie.  It certainly isn't all bad in Hell though...

Some good moments throughout, but the odd Pacing and familiarity hurt this one.  Worth it for the good parts overall though.