SYNOPSIS OF “HOUSEBOUND”:
“Kylie Bucknell is forced to return to the house she grew up in when the court places her on home detention. Her punishment is made all the more unbearable by the fact she has to live there with her mother Miriam – a well-intentioned blabbermouth who’s convinced that the house is haunted. Kylie dismisses Miriam’s superstitions as nothing more than a distraction from a life occupied by boiled vegetables and small town gossip. However, when she too becomes privy to unsettling whispers and strange bumps in the night, she begins to wonder whether she’s inherited her overactive imagination, or if the house is in fact possessed by a hostile spirit who’s not particularly thrilled about her return.”
I absolutely loved this movie. Thank you New Zealand for sending us this gem of a movie. I had heard about this movie from several online sources and when I found it on M-GO to rent, I definitely wanted to give it a shot. This movie literally rocked my socks off. I’m going to keep this review short and sweet because I do not want to give away anything but let me assure you it’s definitely worth a watch.
I think one of the reasons I loved this movie so much was because it reminded me a little bit of my relationship with my mom. I love my mom and we have a really solid relationship now but growing up I was very defiant and wanted to be anywhere other than home. I really connected with the Kylie character in the movie and loved seeing the relationship between her and her mother grow throughout the movie. Moral of that portion of the story? Mom’s can be a pain in the ass but it’s because they love you. I know my mom’s love would be out in the open if she kicked a ghosts ass for me. This movie actually really made me miss my mom (shout out to Diane, thank you for being the most bad-ass mom that I know – mad love and respect to you).
So now that I’m done sucking up to my mom what did I love about this movie? EVERYTHING. It was creepy, it was hysterical, it was smart, it had an awesome twist – I really can’t say anything bad about it. Literally, I just loved the movie and was really surprised with how everything was done.
PROS
– The acting. Great great acting from Morgana O’Reilly (Kylie Bucknell), Rima Te Wiata (Myriam Bucknell), Glen-Paul Waru (Amos), and Ryan Lampp. I don’t want to say anything else but Ryan Lampp I love you lol.
– The setting. 98% of the movie is shot in Myriam’s house. The house is creepy enough and big enough so that you don’t get bored from seeing the same scene over and over again. They use different elements of the house to keep you on your toes.
– Humor. I loved the humor in the movie – it wasn’t forced and because of that it made the characters seem real. The main character said lines that I could totally see myself saying in real life. The humor fit perfect in the movie.
– Scary: Ok the movie isn’t actually scary but there is a lot of tense moments and I totally jumped out of my bed at least once (my boyfriend than proceeded to laugh at me lol). The creep factor is high on this one as you are trying to navigate what is going on throughout the the entire movie.
– The story. That is all I will say.
– The mechanical teddy bear.
– EUGENE!
CONS
– Sometimes it was hard to understand the New Zealand accent. Other than that, no other cons.
Go watch this movie, seriously. It’s one of those movies where you will be grateful for a change from the modern every day “scary” movies. Here are my final thoughts on “Housebound”:
Concept/Story: 2/2
Style/Effect: 1/2
Atmosphere: 2/2
Scares: 1/2
Rewatchability: 2/2
TOTAL: 8/10
Seriously, why aren’t you watching this???
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