A spine-chilling film from 2014 with a near-perfect Rotten Tomatoes rating has stunned horror fans, who have been left stunned its managed to stay under the radar.
Housebound is a horror-comedy following the story of Kylie, a young woman who, after being put on house arrest, is forced to return to her childhood home, where she believes something evil is lurking in the shadows. Joining her at home is her mother and stepfather, whom she doesn’t have a strong liking for.
After a terrifying ordeal when a hand grabs Kylie in the basement, she is convinced there is an unknown force living in the house with them. As the number of unexplained incidents starts to rack up, Kylie and her family are determined to investigate what is actually happening and uncover the terrifying history of the home.
To lighten the tension in this truly terrifying film Housebound has a sprinkling of dark comedy throughout, making it a standout watch for viewers. And yet, it remains virtually unknown despite director, Gerard Johnstone’s later work on the sci-fi horror ‘M3gan’.
One impressed viewer took to Rotten Tomatoes to review the film, saying: “Very unique horror-comedy. Did not expect it to be so well-crafted. Can’t believe I’ve never heard of nor watched it until a couple of nights ago.
“Morgana O’Reilly did an amazing job acting in this. It had some good jump scares, and the comedic elements are extremely subtle. I do recommend watching this film.”
39-year-old actress Morgan O’Reilley takes centre stage as the lead in this film and has received huge praise for her role as Kylie. One viewer, while acknowledging Ross Harper’s “fine” performance, claims that Morgana O’Reilly and Glen-Paul Waru are the real “show-stoppers” of the movie.
In agreement with them are countless other reviewers, with another dubbing the film as both “original” and “unpredictable.” They wrote: “Such an underrated masterpiece! Housebound is easily in my top 3 favourite movies of all time simply for its originality, humour, and unpredictability. I wish I could go back in time and watch it for the first time again.
“Going from thinking it was a ghost story to a home invader story to a ‘this crazy girl is seeing things’ story, then back again was an absolutely delicious unicorn that almost never happens with today’s predictable garbage. Pure cinematic gold.”
Fans praise of the film could be down to its comedy elements, making it more bearable for those that aren’t typical horror watchers. In an interview with Flicks, director Gerard Johnstone jokes that it’s a “horror movie you can take your mum to.”
He further explained: “I always said it was a ‘kitchen sink ghost mystery,’ which is obtuse, but what I meant is that it sort of infuses social realism with goofy scares. And it’s fun. It won’t give you nightmares.” Although some viewers might disagree, with one writing, This movie is the epitome of why I couldn’t sleep alone in the dark or walk home alone at night as a kid.”
Of course, not all horror fans were impressed by the low-budget New Zealand debut from Johnstone. One dissatisfied viewer thought the movie was “amateurish and cliché”. They wrote, “The favourable reviews could be related to its country of origin. I’m all for encouraging lower-budget films, but this brings nothing new to the table.”
Housebound, the underated horror-comedy, is now avalible to watch on BBC iplayer.