I didn't think it was awful - I thought it had promise and was interesting for the most part. However, the execution came up short. So, I'm going to split the difference and give it a 5/10.
Positives *Nice visual atmosphere *Generally kept my interest *Decent acting *Mostly good concept
Negatives
*Disjointed - the main characters kept changing throughout. I think Vera was brought to the forefront too close to the end of the movie to be an acceptable protagonist. *Plot holes and inconsistencies (to be discussed further) *Soundtrack was EXTREMELY distracting – I was more startled by the sudden volume and tempo changes than by anything on the screen. Music should be there to enhance the mood, not to shove it down the viewer's throat. *Lack of resemblance between the two "sisters." Naya Rivera and Catalina Moreno could hardly look more different if they tried. They have distinct skin tones, hair type and color, face shape, facial structure, eye-and-nose-shape just to name a few features. If this was meant as a vehicle for Naya, they should have chosen an actress who more closely resembled her. To me, the dissimilarities were distracting.
PLOT HOLES Even with the suspension of disbelief (a prerequisite for watching horror movies), there should be some consistency and dare I say it, logic to the theme and the scares.
1. There should have been more explanation regarding the teenager and his uncle. What was their relationship with the devil? How did it come about in the first place? What did they get out of the deal? There was so little there that these two characters might as well have been discarded on the cutting room floor. At that level, their inclusion was more harmful than helpful. They didn't take it far enough
2. If Hannah sold her soul to the devil, wouldn't the devil's domain be her and her alone? How and why would Satan have been able to wait so long and attempt to inhabit someone else? Wouldn't there have been better things to do, more souls to conquer, etc.? It doesn't make sense that just because Leigh and Vera both went into the house, saw "Hannah," and touched the soot, they would have been ripe for the picking. In some movies, the devil can get anyone and everyone - but this film was not presented in this manner at the outset. If the devil could get to both Leigh and Vera, why not Charlene, the runaway daughter? It would have had ample opportunity with her living in the house.
3. What Vera saw at times didn't really make sense. If she was seeing the pretend Hannah (and later, her "daughter"), why would she also see various manifestations of demons/the devil in the same situation? Why do both? It seems like an awful lot of effort with no purpose.
4. Why did Vera even get to live? If the goal was to create offspring so that the devil could be "all of someone," wouldn't Vera have served her purpose as the vessel? It was obvious that the only reason she remained was to extend the movie. I don't think the ending added anything. Vera would hopefully have realized that it would be impossible to kill the devil's spawn. But if that was her goal, why did she leave with the child instead? We didn't see any overt manipulation/possession that could account for this behavior. To me, the ending fell flat.
Positives *Nice visual atmosphere *Generally kept my interest *Decent acting *Mostly good concept
Negatives
*Disjointed - the main characters kept changing throughout. I think Vera was brought to the forefront too close to the end of the movie to be an acceptable protagonist. *Plot holes and inconsistencies (to be discussed further) *Soundtrack was EXTREMELY distracting – I was more startled by the sudden volume and tempo changes than by anything on the screen. Music should be there to enhance the mood, not to shove it down the viewer's throat. *Lack of resemblance between the two "sisters." Naya Rivera and Catalina Moreno could hardly look more different if they tried. They have distinct skin tones, hair type and color, face shape, facial structure, eye-and-nose-shape just to name a few features. If this was meant as a vehicle for Naya, they should have chosen an actress who more closely resembled her. To me, the dissimilarities were distracting.
PLOT HOLES Even with the suspension of disbelief (a prerequisite for watching horror movies), there should be some consistency and dare I say it, logic to the theme and the scares.
1. There should have been more explanation regarding the teenager and his uncle. What was their relationship with the devil? How did it come about in the first place? What did they get out of the deal? There was so little there that these two characters might as well have been discarded on the cutting room floor. At that level, their inclusion was more harmful than helpful. They didn't take it far enough
2. If Hannah sold her soul to the devil, wouldn't the devil's domain be her and her alone? How and why would Satan have been able to wait so long and attempt to inhabit someone else? Wouldn't there have been better things to do, more souls to conquer, etc.? It doesn't make sense that just because Leigh and Vera both went into the house, saw "Hannah," and touched the soot, they would have been ripe for the picking. In some movies, the devil can get anyone and everyone - but this film was not presented in this manner at the outset. If the devil could get to both Leigh and Vera, why not Charlene, the runaway daughter? It would have had ample opportunity with her living in the house.
3. What Vera saw at times didn't really make sense. If she was seeing the pretend Hannah (and later, her "daughter"), why would she also see various manifestations of demons/the devil in the same situation? Why do both? It seems like an awful lot of effort with no purpose.
4. Why did Vera even get to live? If the goal was to create offspring so that the devil could be "all of someone," wouldn't Vera have served her purpose as the vessel? It was obvious that the only reason she remained was to extend the movie. I don't think the ending added anything. Vera would hopefully have realized that it would be impossible to kill the devil's spawn. But if that was her goal, why did she leave with the child instead? We didn't see any overt manipulation/possession that could account for this behavior. To me, the ending fell flat.