film reel image

film reel image

Sunday, July 17, 2022

Deep Hatred 2022 * 1/2 Stars

DEEP COVERED

"This place is messing with my mind". I'm not surprised. Most places in terror flicks promote that shtick.

Anyway 2022's Deep Hatred has a pretty creepy opening scene. My jaw kinda dropped. I mean a guy is beaten to death with a hammer, hooded, and then thrown into a lake. "Hatred" never maintains that intensity or mystery throughout the next 70 minutes or so. Added to that, the opening clip just mentioned seems like a confusing prelude for what's to come.

Deep Hatred for me is just another cursory horror film, a sort of dog and pony show that you've seen countless times in the past. Two couples return to a family home that is haunted and moldy (ha ha). There's a jump scare or two, some blood, some possession, some spooky stick figures, no cell signal in the middle of nowhere, and no one can leave said home. Basically you have to imagine a boring, anemic version of The Blair Witch Project.

"Hatred" is directed by two people (Daniela Carvalho, Ale McHaddo). Did they need two people? Uh no. These guys fashion an almost PG-13 rated scarefest that omits any real tension or strain, a real tease if you will. Carvalho and McHaddo try to make up for their shortcomings with a surprise ending done in flashbacks. Sigh. Said ending is more of an inserted gimmick that doesn't answer for everything sluggish that came before it.

Endings and surprise twists begot, the unknown actors involved (Sara Drust, Jeremy Sless, Evan Judson) strain with the recycled, napkin screenplay too. You can only say, "we gotta get out of here" or "I'm getting out of here" so many times. All in all, Deep Hatred is an interesting title for what I just saw. I kinda "hated" it and I didn't find it "deep" either.

Written by Jesse Burleson

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