Hi again, ghosts and ghouls! I’m here to inform you that yes, there is in fact a type of horror film you haven’t seen yet. I know, insane, right? You all know how jaded I’ve become to the lack of creativity within the horror industry lately – every story feels the same, every character is one-dimensional and unremarkable.

However, when THE VAULT came along, it felt like I was transported to horror heaven, because for once, a story I had never heard before came into existence. You’ve heard of haunted houses, haunted forests…but what about a haunted bank? I KNOW, RIGHT?! I promise you, just keep reading. It’s better than it sounds.

THE VAULT is a story about three siblings (Taryn Manning, Francesca Eastwood, Scott Haze) that rob a bank together to save their brother who owes a lot of money to the wrong people. Talk about a close family bond, right? It increasingly becomes more obvious that there is a strained relationship between the siblings, but what they really need is to stick together, because what they don’t know is that in the basement of the bank is the vault that holds all of the funds…and a dark secret from 1982 that still looms within the halls.

A bank employee (James Franco) leads them to exactly where they need to go in order to save his staff, but will they actually make it to the cash? Or will the horrible past of the bank create obstacles that these robbers aren’t able to overcome?

I swear, you guys, I know how bad it sounds. It sounds like it should be a terrible, cheesy, stupid horror movie but I assure you it is NOT. Give it a chance, because it will make your jaded little horror heart sing.

Franco (as always) provides a stellar performance as Ed Maas, who genuinely just wants to see the staff make it out alive. Manning and Eastwood are absolutely stellar as two siblings that I absolutely HATED, which is good, because you’re supposed to hate them! They’re bad guys. Rude and obnoxious and unorganized, and they play it really well.

And the storyline is so interesting and strange, almost funny, but somehow it works beautifully. There is one plot twist at the very end of the film that audibly had me yelling – it was THAT good. Perhaps a little predictable, but the way it was explained was awesome.

I genuinely loved this film so much that I almost put it on for a second watch-through immediately after the credits rolled. It’s a rollercoaster ride of emotions – you go in feeling a little bit wary….think “how good could this actually be?”, then, you’re introduced to the characters and you’re saying to yourself: “wow, I hate them. I love him! She’s awesome. Wait, no, she’s supposed to be bad, I hate her.” THEN, there’s some real screwed up imagery to blow your mind. One in particular had me flinching. Then there’s the plot twist, and suddenly, all is right with the world and you sit back, sigh, and say “man, I liked it.” Unless you hate it, in which case I definitely think you weren’t paying attention. But hey, to each their own right?

THE VAULT is in cinemas and on iTunes & Digital HD on September 8th. Get your hands on it as soon as you can!

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Taylor Krauss

Taylor has been a horror fan for as long as she can remember, begging her parents to let her see The Exorcist at the tender age of just five years old. Since then, she has developed a lifelong obsession with all things strange, paranormal, and creepy. If you find her doing something other than watching a horror film, she’s probably raging as a dwarf barbarian playing Dungeons and Dragons (obsessively…it’s a problem), quoting Lord of the Rings incessantly, or trying to become Dana Scully.

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