Crawlspace (2012) Reviews

• It's fine for what it is

  DarleneHamilton2014-08-03

  This movie us weirdly retro, it has a Stepford Kids/Stepfather/people Across the Lake feel to it, I had to double check it was 2013 as it feels so dated! I'm not saying that as a negative btw.) It's far from the worst film I've ever seen. It was reasonably well acted, script was quite cringeworthy, mildly gory, there was some sex, (one with no boobs and one with boobs) usual highly implausible execution but it's a budget horror movie so I'll let it go. Usual horror flick rules apply, eg- don't over analyse the plot or ask how this can possibly be going on. How can people go missing and no - one notices. Standard home invasion, enjoyable and disposable. Corny and charming. 4.5/10

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• Quite good (and also quite bad)

  bowmanblue2014-07-27

  Many a time the problem with a movie (and 'horror' movies in particular) is that you don't care about the characters. As 'Cabin in the Woods' pointed out, the 'stars' of such films are little more than: 'Generic Blonde A,' the 'Jock, the Slut' and 'the Best Friend.' So, for a start, they're not particularly entertaining and, secondly, you don't really care about them when they meet their grisly end. However, in 'The Attic,' the characters are actually quite well-written. The main cast are all a family, who have just moved into a nice suburban house in America. And, they're actually quite likable. They're likable, largely because they behave like a real family, i.e. they bicker and get at each other, plus no one has been written as a deliberate 'comic element.' So, in a cheap B-movie, I found myself actually wanting to watch more and really enjoying the film. Unfortunately, although the writers can definitely do 'characters' and dialogue, they're not too good at story or plausibility. The family move into their new home, only to discover that the previous occupant is still living in the attic (and he doesn't take too kindly to newcomers in 'his' house). And that's where the story falls down. You may guess that a certain amount of murders follow and no one seems to notice. People just disappear from the property and no one really bothers to look into it. Plus the badguy himself is pretty lame and not particularly threatening. The death-scenes are at least inventive on the low budget and some of the kills are clever (if possibly a little unrealistic). And special mention to the youngest member of the family. He's not in it that much, so he doesn't have a lot to do, but his 'one-liners' are quite amusing. All in all, I really enjoyed the dialogue and family interaction. It was just the plot and lack of realism that spoiled it. I'd quite like to see the same family in a different (horror) situation, as they were definitely the film's high point. http://thewrongtreemoviereviews.blogspot.co.uk/

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• Good Concept - Flawed Execution

  ikeybabe2014-06-16

  Hmmmm...this wasn't a great movie. It was average in everything - average story, average acting ability, average cast. And some things didn't make any sense other than to be a point of spookiness - like the old lady neighbor. *SPOILER ALERT* So the dude in the attic is nuts and starts killing those who get in his way. Let's be real, there's not that much saran wrap in a single roll, OK?! And how is it no one could hear him above creeping around. Wood floors creek. I kept watching though and tried to enjoy the concept. I have heard of an incident or two where unbeknownst to homeowners there's someone living in the crawlspace. The concept is extremely scary, but the execution here was very flawed. Good try though.

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• Very well made horror/thriller-surpassed expectations !

  rmkdec2013-07-23

  Strangely enough in the U.K I watched this on SKY Satellite as a U.K Premiere this week on The Horror Channel yet it is listed as not yet released in U.S.A ! I will be very sad if U.K audiences miss out on this as a cinema release. For me it is surprisingly well made and modern,extremely believable story and every aspect of a families daily life is written and captured beautifully by the director and a very effective cast. In short there has been an awful accident in the pool that is now drained that afflicted the previous owners who left as the house was foreclosed by the bank...and the new family are not alone in the house and soon become aware of this fact.The twists and turns that then follow I did not expect and just when you think my that must be it another twist occurs....how will this end?..Who or what is in the house and what do they want? A spooky old lady neighbour adds to the suspense and I will reveal no more.It is so scary that as a life long horror fan if I think it is good then usually its well worth a watch. I did not expect things to pan out how they did and at the end was left with an open mouth and a feeling of wow so glad I got to watch that. Another problem is a movie with the same name has been released the same year from an Australian company and this is confusing many far and wide. That is a great shame if it means this is lost in space.

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• A woefully bad example of a horror thriller that's only worth watching for Steven Weber.

  Foreverisacastironmess1232013-08-04

  Where to begin with what's wrong with this movie.. Well the word cliché comes to mind, there wasn't exactly anything here that I hadn't seen done better about a 1000 times before. The 'family' were just terrible. They had no chemistry together whatsoever, and I never bought them as a family for a minute. The actors playing the parents were especially bad. I found the bumbling, ineffectual chipmunk-cheeked joke of a father plain annoying to look at and listen to, and I don't know if the gal who played the mother had had any facial-work done on her at any point, but her face and expressions just did not move, like at all throughout the whole thing! The other three playing the kids were alright enough, but to me they were just a horribly mismatched group of people. And some of the stuff that they expected the viewer to swallow in this was outrageous! It's one thing for a man to be living in someone's attic without them knowing about it, but to also have that man walking around the house at night, standing in doorways and over people while they're sleeping? *NO*, you bad, intelligence-insulting film you! The direction was weak, and just didn't capture what should have been the classic horror thrills and fun of the story. Some of it was very vaguely OK, I mean I don't know, I think kids'll enjoy it, people with low expectations for a movie! It was basically entertaining enough while I was watching it that I didn't wanna jump off a cliff or anything.. You've got to suspend your disbelief-a lot! The only thing that I definitely did enjoy was Steven Weber as the deranged killer. I thought he was overqualified and frankly too good to be in such completely forgettable garbage. I thought he was really funny when he'd give the camera little mischievous knowing grins at certain hectic moments. Ha, in the final-frame he is messed up! I actually was rooting for him, as pretty much everyone else in the cast was so boring and stupid. There wasn't much at all to like, but I did enjoy the outrageousness of the bit where the horndog son pays the babysitter to sleep with him and she actually does! And I liked the performance of the actress who played the nosy old neighbour until she popped her clogs. She reminded me a lot of the swamp hag from Pumpkinhead. Her death was quite nasty, although a little gore sure wouldn't have hurt none-she had a freaking vacuum cleaner rammed down her throat! All the kills were fair well done and didn't skimp on the violence. Not that I watch a horror movie exclusively for that stuff but in dire straits such as this, it can be a very minor plus! Something that I found pretty cool was how they showed the classic creepy surreal Fleischer cartoon "Minnie the Moocher" a lot to sinister effect. So lame! In my opinion just a mildly enjoyable but ultimately bad flick. Only view it for Weber's performance if you absolutely have to at all. Bye, now.

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