Even though this starts off with a group of four little kids who sound Australian, this is in fact an English horror film from 2001. It still isn't out on DVD except in Australia for some reason which I have yet to figure out. I think those little kids probably were Australian after all.
Here's the official blurb: "Craig is a college student with a business plan. He and six friends have broken into a derelict asylum to stage the party of the year - and get rich in the process. With DJ Lux on the decks, Lee's spectacular light show and sexy Victoria pouring the drinks, how can they fail? But as the team set up, things start to go horribly wrong. Sarah becomes convinced that they are not alone, and as the panic rises the asylum begins to take on a life of its own. Walls disappear, they reappear and the group are forced further and further into the mysterious depths of the building where something ancient and sinister is waiting for them. The quest for fun is about to become a race to stay alive." It is absolutely full of UK soap actors including Dawn (Kara Tointon), Gus (Mohammed George) and Tony (Mark Horner) from "Eastenders" and three more whose names I don't know (but whose faces I recognised from "The Bill" and "Holby City"). You could tagline this film with "Eastenders does horror!" and it wouldn't be far from the truth.
It is all filmed extremely well and looks a lot like that other Eastenders filled horror "Long Time Dead"... but it's much better than that and doesn't have the horrid Joe Absolom in it. It has a good atmosphere in spite of the low budget and, because it contains real actors, it appears far more professional than the usual independent horrors.
Anyway, as the blurb says, this is about a group of "teenagers" who break into what used to be an asylum to use the building for an illegal rave. A lot of the film is spent building up the characters, showing them setting things up, pranking each other and exploring the building but there are a few genuinely spooky events along the way. Things build up bit by bit and there is a twist in the last scene.
I really liked this a lot. The acting is much the same as an "Eastenders" episode and so is very good, gritty and realistic. The incidental music used for the scary bits is typical TV movie stuff but works well too. The ending is a bit of a cop out but it doesn't spoil anything.
I've rated this as 6 out of 10 but I'd rate it higher if I could actually buy it. Hopefully Lionsgate will pick this up and distribute it as they seem to doing with everything else. We can only hope.
Here's the official blurb: "Craig is a college student with a business plan. He and six friends have broken into a derelict asylum to stage the party of the year - and get rich in the process. With DJ Lux on the decks, Lee's spectacular light show and sexy Victoria pouring the drinks, how can they fail? But as the team set up, things start to go horribly wrong. Sarah becomes convinced that they are not alone, and as the panic rises the asylum begins to take on a life of its own. Walls disappear, they reappear and the group are forced further and further into the mysterious depths of the building where something ancient and sinister is waiting for them. The quest for fun is about to become a race to stay alive." It is absolutely full of UK soap actors including Dawn (Kara Tointon), Gus (Mohammed George) and Tony (Mark Horner) from "Eastenders" and three more whose names I don't know (but whose faces I recognised from "The Bill" and "Holby City"). You could tagline this film with "Eastenders does horror!" and it wouldn't be far from the truth.
It is all filmed extremely well and looks a lot like that other Eastenders filled horror "Long Time Dead"... but it's much better than that and doesn't have the horrid Joe Absolom in it. It has a good atmosphere in spite of the low budget and, because it contains real actors, it appears far more professional than the usual independent horrors.
Anyway, as the blurb says, this is about a group of "teenagers" who break into what used to be an asylum to use the building for an illegal rave. A lot of the film is spent building up the characters, showing them setting things up, pranking each other and exploring the building but there are a few genuinely spooky events along the way. Things build up bit by bit and there is a twist in the last scene.
I really liked this a lot. The acting is much the same as an "Eastenders" episode and so is very good, gritty and realistic. The incidental music used for the scary bits is typical TV movie stuff but works well too. The ending is a bit of a cop out but it doesn't spoil anything.
I've rated this as 6 out of 10 but I'd rate it higher if I could actually buy it. Hopefully Lionsgate will pick this up and distribute it as they seem to doing with everything else. We can only hope.