Hollows Grove

Plot synopsis:
The film is framed with footage of an FBI agent, (Matthew Carey), who introduces the footage as material shot during an episode for the paranormal investigation show S.P.I.T. (Spirit Paranormal Investigation Team). Most of the footage is taken from the camera of Harold, who was accompanying the team in order to shoot a documentary, but is interspersed with footage from other cameras on set. The movie then cuts to the start of Harold’s footage.
Harold is shown to be a down-on-his-luck filmmaker, as he finds his normal job (creating footage for a comedy show) unfulfilling and has recently broken up with his girlfriend. He’s hoping that the documentary on S.P.I.T. will give him some much needed exposure in the entertainment world, but is disappointed when he finds that all of the supernatural elements and evidence seen on the show are fake, engineered by their special effects coordinator Bill (Lance Henriksen) for maximum entertainment. Despite this, he decides to continue with filming, as the group will be traveling to Hollows Grove, a former orphanage and hospital known for being exceptionally haunted.
At the site the building’s caretaker Hector (Eddie Perez) tries to convince the group to leave, as he believes the Grove to be genuinely dangerous, as many people have died while investigating the building. However, the group chooses to ignore his advice and enters the building anyway. Once inside, they experience a number of seemingly paranormal events, which they dismiss as some of Bill’s stunts. It’s only when one of the events includes the dead body of a cat that they begin to become unsettled and start wondering if the events are truly real. As the night progresses the group experiences more and more phenomena, forcing them to realize that Hector’s warnings were legitimate. These phenomena also result in separating the group members as they’re attacked and killed one by one. Attempts to escape are unsuccessful. Eventually only Harold remains and he tries one last time to flee, only for him to be attacked and dragged into the building’s basement, where he’s thrown into a boiler and burned alive.
The film ends with Jones stating that the FBI investigated the building and found that there were no survivors save for one member, Julie (Bresha Webb), who is stuck in a coma after she threw herself out of a window. He also informs the viewer that they did find one piece of evidence, a swirling fog trapped in a clear container. As the film ends, a face surfaces in the fog and lunges at the camera. After the credits Julie is shown waking up in the hospital but is also revealed to be supernaturally possessed.

Tags: haunting

Review:
I can't believe the good reviews here, the only good thing I can say about this haunted hospital mess is that it might be slightly better than that nepotistic abomination from Oliver Stone's kid and some other movie that tried way too hard for lovable characters and scares and failed on both, and that one was set in a prison hospital, so if you want to be picky then it doesn't count here.
I also can't recall the titles of those movies and don't care enough to find them again, so they may actually be better than Hollows Grove.First, the dialog the characters use for their show's narrative is so insipid, inane and uninformative that I could almost believe it was intentionally done as a statement on the stupidity of the typical reality show, but I don't know if I can give the writers that much credit, since the characters' dialog is just as bad in their interactions with each other.
The film also feels like it takes forever to get anywhere, focusing too much and too long on building cliché characters who ultimately contribute nothing to the story beyond a body count.
I did wind up giving the film three stars for some of the better effects, but I think I was feeling too generous.
And I won't even talk about the FBI ending, as that was bad enough to cause the entire film to lose a star, now that I think about it.You want the same storyline?
Matt Doherty is up there in the absolute worst horror movie actors I've seen.
I actually looked him up on IMDb just to see who he was and what other acting jobs he'd gotten, which is when I decided to leave a review.
For a scary movie, especially a low budget one, this is really good.
Initially everybody watching it with me complained about the slow build and the fact that we were sick of the flood of "home movie" style scary movies.
It didn't do it with crazy cheap scares or jump scenes, but with that slow build I mentioned earlier.
The characters are pretty well developed and the acting is good.
The story is the usual "we go to a haunted place and discover it's actually haunted" but the perspective is pretty different.
Though the movie was semi-predictable, it kept me and everybody I watched it with on the edge of our seats, especially near the end.
My only real complaint about this movie is the beginning and end scenes with the detective.
It made it seem too much like an interactive movie at Universal Studios or something.
But stay after the credits, and the bad ending scene makes up for itself..
Oh look, another paranormal sub-genred' film to look into.
Most people may already be scared away by the two unlikeable facts, those being number one, this involves a team going into an abandoned area, clichés.
Two horror movie factors most more than likely can't stand.
"Hollows Grove" succeeds in being a tense, creepy horror film, actually.
Instead of taking the heavily clichéd route, that being the action of throwing this group of characters together as supposed friends with camera into this abandoned area.
We actually follow a rookie cameraman of which has just joined this team of ghost hunters; the entire film sets it up to where it all seems fake; the film shows them going to mechanics and such just to prop up they're supposed "ghosts".
I love how the cameraman is completely oblivious the entire time, and has / had no idea of these ghost hunters actually being fake.
It was interesting to see, all this time he was built up toward believing it was all fake, until the entire team, to their surprise, got way more than they all bargained for.
I felt as if the atmosphere in this film was quite good, you got your creepy, unnerving atmosphere that gives those unsettling vibes, for example, as soon as the crew enters the abandoned orphanage, you already feel the vibes kick in, pleasantly.
Something many found footage films fail to do, for the most part.
With that being said, another nice surprise that awaited in this film was the camera work.
He wasn't shaky, shaky, ALL over the place like most other films.
To my surprise, the camera actually got decent shots of activity that befalls, instead of shaking all over the place when it's occurring!
It managed to be unique, and even comical it times, but successfully, and pleasantly, for the most part an eerie, dark - like influence that set the mood for the film in a very great way.
I felt as if it was a decent, solid, and even great found footage, paranormal film.
The characters are decent, stories great, as well as plot.
The entire story itself has some interesting, good, refreshing turns that paid off in the end, and the entire film has heart, giving emphasis instead of chopping to the point.
It's an intriguing, great little flick, and I would recommend it to horror fans looking for a small gem.
For those who do watch this film, make sure you wait the entire thing out!
Interesting found footage follows in the footsteps of Grave Encounters.
Too bad he only has 2 scenes.I went into this thinking it would be along the lines of Grave Encounters, which I really like, and it sort of is.
Whereas Grave Encounters went right for the jugular, this one has most of the spooky stuff happening off camera (singing and whispering heard, things disappearing when an area is returned to).
The setting is creepy and some genuinely frightening stuff happens near the end, but it is almost too late by then.Hollows Grove did keep me interested throughout however and is definitely worth a watch for fans of these types of movies.
By the box the movie looks like it will just be another shabby found footage film but instead it is a creative, unique and freighting experience.
While the writing towards the end did get a little lazy, all in all it was one of the few movies that gave me the creeps just for watching it!
I'm not sure why it has such a bad review as it is a very surprisingly scary movie!
The actors aren't annoying, there are decent special effects, the camera work isn't bad and better yet the script while being a found footage film is 100% original and even funny at some points..
This is how horror movies should be done..
Five members of a documentary crew go to a long-abandoned children's' orphanage to see if there are any ghosts.
Once inside, they begin filming in the kitchen.
They think their special effects man, Bill (Lance Henriksen), rigged that to happen.
That and other incidents that are hard to credit Bill with start making the crew's stay in the hospital very ominous.
It's not that original, because there have been many movies that take place in abandoned institutions such as hospitals and such.
However, they developed fun characters - especially Julie :D I recommend this movie.I gave this a 7-star rating.
This is how good horror films should be done, and it's the first one that I've seen in a long time that I felt really impressed by.
My one problem with this is that I really don't like found-footage films very much, because they say that what it is at the beginning, making it obvious everybody dies.
It is a quite good "found footage" style horror movie.
These are especially effective as the movie picks up pace.
First off, yes, it's formulaic and low budget, but I had some good laughs and it was also surprisingly creepy at times.
The found footage aspect didn't hurt the film since the camera was being helmed by someone doing an actual documentary within the movie, a vocation that person made a living doing.
Yet another movie trying to take advance of the presence of this God of cinema called Lance Henriksen, putting him almost on the cover but not so much on the screen.
Don't know why he puts up with this, he can and always will do better than this!Now about the movie: I've seen too many like this.
Nothing new out of production, acting, plot, scares, ideas, only difference between movies like this or SxTape, Grave Encounters and so many others simply consist on the director's decision or sometimes on the length of the film.
Another typical found footage film, with a crew going inside an abandoned hospital where strange things begin to happen.
Solid Horror Film.
This film while having no lead stars is one of the best found footage films we have ever seen.
Leading into the film I can assure you do not know how it is going to end.
Hollows Grove is actually creepy, and doesn't resort to cheap scares.
It's not quite edge of your seat, but given the budget it doesn't need to be.Character building is actually done quite well which is a nice change from other films of this sub-genre.
It adds a nice humour element which fits in well with the theme of the film.The acting could've been better though, and sometimes it just felt too forced.
Lance Henriksen was probably the only shining light and I wish he was part of the camera crew (maybe instead of Matt Doherty who was hilariously bad) so we could see more from him.Overall, Hollows Grove is a decent horror flick which fulfils it's expectations, whilst avoiding the pitfalls that other found footage titles fall into.
I think it merits a watch as you might just find yourself surprised like I did..
B Horror Flick with Scares & Laughs.
Which is a good thing!!!It had a predictable plot but it played out well.The scare anticipation was really good as well as the special effects.
A lot of it was Cheesy & Cornball but that added to the movie.And...you have to stick around for all of the credits at the end.
This is how it should be done - mostly.Most important is they build up characters, well played, with good humour.The tension is built well in the hospital, but I had a problem with the documentary film because they didn't seem to be much good at producing a product they're supposed to make lots of money from.I've seen stuff like this where the ghosts are only suggested.
And they had to caption on screen that it was Tim's camera at the climax of his story.For the genre it's good, but nothing new..
All in all a terrible film, entertaining at times, through its sheer stupidity but overall not a good film at all..
It was a great movie.
#2 it would have neen better if it had small things happening more through put and build it up toward the end.
It looks like they were going for that but once the the ghosts were seen it all escalated way too fast.
This is FBI case file B 4785 and we the audience are helping them solve this case of found footage, a claim made less convincing by using Lance Henriksen in the film and having a credit roll.
Harold Maxwell (Matthew Carey) recently dumped by his girlfriend (useless plot point) is allowed to film behind the scenes of a paranormal investigation group known as S.P.I.T. and are in their 5th season.
Early on they film Bill (Lance Henriksen) who sets up the filming location with fake scares.
When our crew arrives at the second most haunted place in America (the first one has been overdone) they believe all the scary stuff that is happening has been staged by Bill, something that sets this production apart.
Hollows Grove was an overcrowded orphanage with the proverbial crematorium in the basement and crazy kid on the upper floor.Many of the gags we have seen done before and were slightly boring, if if they did it a little better.
The really good scare scene (photo on back cover and sell point of the film) was short lived and not repeated.The very end of the film reminded me of an Internet gag and wasn't as effective as my black cat jumping on my lap with 20 minutes left in the film...about the time things go super critical.
I almost stopped watching this film....
I don't even like the hint of anything happening to an animal, and the first half hour of this film was almost a deal killer.There was an incident with a cat inside the asylum.
But...it ended up being okay and fake enough to not be too upsetting and the fact that the Humane Society was on hand to monitor, redeemed the film, to a degree.Parts of the dialogue were hilarious and I actually laughed out loud.The dialogue was real, hip and believable.
The ghost kids and creepy asylum were old, tired, clichéd and seriously, eh, but it was the typical story, so I could deal with that.But...what killed this movie for me, was the ending.What a useless ending and a total letdown..
Actually, pretty good .
It's actually an okay "found- footage" film, albeit a bit too short.
The acting's good: There's great camaraderie amongst the cast which really helps sell some of the humor.
Lance Henriksen makes a relatively brief cameo as the "spooky effects"-guy, and is -- of course -- awesome to watch (whatever someone might think of his film choices).
The camera-work is good: neither too jumpy nor too focused like in a real camera shot.
The special effects are what they are given that -- I'm assuming -- the film was probably given a paltry budget.The conceit of the whole movie is that the F.
is using the footage to get help in solving the murders of the crew of a paranormal T.
Anyways, it felt like a moment of amateurism on the part of the writer, like: "Hey, let's throw in some weird stuff at the end to creep out the audience."It just so happens that some guy is also following the crew around in order to film them for his documentary.
So, having two cameras allows for some more possibilities: In other words, the documentary guy catches things that the "paranormals" don't while they tape their canned script to their own cameraman.
But, it also has the effect of making the film feel more like a movie, rather than an authentic "found footage" experience.
and, a disbelieving film crew from a paranormal T.
V. show that thinks it's all a bunch of laughs and "wind-blowing-through-cracks- in-the-walls." I mean: Where do you start?It's a comfortable, easy film to watch.
It has been a very, very long time since a horror movie made me jump in any way.
The jump scares were plentiful, and very effective, and there were several points during their exploration where my hands were clasped firmly over my mouth to prevent me from making any loud noises and disturbing my neighbors at 1:30 a.m. The ghostly children were rarely seen, which made their appearances more spooky.
It was mostly atmosphere and anticipation that made this a truly enjoyable horror film..
Usually These Ghost Hunter "Paranormal" "POV" Movies Leave Me Wishing I Had Watched Something Else ...
The Movie Starts With An F.B.I. Agent Asking For Your (Yes You The Viewer) Help In Watching The "Found Footage" And Helping Them Determine What Happen ...
The Movie Uses Really Well The "WTF Was That" Moments And The "Crap My Heart Skipped A Beat" Special Effects To Near Excellence ...
If That Isn't Enough Watch To The End Of The Credits Where There Is An Extra Scene That Made Me Drop My "Popcorn" ....
With their tongues firmly in their collective cheeks, a crew of television ghost hunters (lead by the diminutive and highly irritating Tim Royce, played by Matt Doherty) are reluctantly given permission to investigate an abandoned children's orphanage.One of the benefits of this style of found-footage stories is that, as the characters acquaint the viewers of their filmed footage with information about the building, we – the audience – are also being fed information that feeds our own feelings about the scenario.
Equally useful is the less-than-serious attitude of the characters; when strange things begin to happen, they all assume one of their number is responsible.
After all, they are filming a ghost-hunting entertainment show.
The creaks and shadows are probably the work of their resident effects man, Bill (an underused Lance Henriksen)  well, aren't they?
'Grave Encounters', a similar project from 2011, seems to have been set up as a benchmark for this kind of film, and there are pleasing similarities – with a TV crew in an old abandoned building, there are bound to be.The cast is very good.
Only the breath-taking Bresha Webb as producer Julie fails to convince, although there is a post end-credits sequence that redeems her performance somewhat.You'll probably have seen this kind of thing before, but not always this enjoyable in the execution..
An okay found footage film.
Good effort at a found footage.
The setting is great and despite how cliché the plot has become thus far, it had everything to be an awesome title in the genre.
Lance Henriksen is the only actor here; the others look as though they are performing in a school play.
They end up doing it, eventually, but it takes a whole lot of time and one even gets courageous enough to venture into dark rooms after hearing his name - knowing for sure that it couldn't have been none of his friends who was calling.
That being said, the major shooting of the TV show sequence is actually entertaining, as if we are watching the making of Ghost Adventures.
Had the movie bypassed the flaws that killed its impact and power to scare, this really could have been THE scene.
Overall, it accounts to an okay film.