The Bell Keeper

It's kind of hard to forge a decent horror film, when the concept is to make a cheap pastiche, based on an idiotic premise.

The whole thing is effectively a mash-up of Evil Dead and Knock At The Cabin - which is an act of blasphemy in itself.

And tries way too hard to force a horror-comedy angle into the storyline...which just doesn't work.

Because it makes the whole thing seem confused about what it wants to be.

Does it want to be a comedy? Or serious horror?

One can only assume they've tried to make it the best of both worlds.

However, these two different paths mix like oil and water in this example.

With the crux of the storyline coming off extremely forced at best.

It's just not a very good film.

But I guess that's what you get when you try to emulate a hack like Shyamalan.

It's not surprising that this was made by the same director who brought us the travesty that is Snow Falls (among other awful 2023 releases).

And while it might not be as bad as that film...it's still pretty bad.

2 out of 10.

A cheap B-movie horror about some friends going out to film in the woods in search of a legendary bell. The story goes that those who ring the bell are thereafter cursed by a demon, and of course these numbskulls have to go and see for themselves what it's all about. It's business as usual for the genre, with a small cast and only middling scares, although it's surprisingly well paced which means it's more watchable than some. The biggest surprise here is a rare foray into the horror genre for former wrestling star Randy Couture, best known for THE EXPENDABLES movies; he gives the best performance here and is quite likeable.

The storyline in "The Gate Keeper", as written by Joe Davison and Luke Genton, was actually a fair enough script and storyline, which felt like something you'd see in a 1980s horror movie. And I have to admit that I liked that about it, as it was a nice touch to the movie.

The movie even had the classic hiker out looking for a lost sibling, complete with a missings person flyer and all. That was definitely a nod towards the tropes often seen in 1980s and 1990s horror movies.

The acting performances in "The Bell Keeper" were actually good. I can't claim to be thrilled about having the likes of Randy Couture on the cast list, and in such a pivotal role nonetheless, as I never did take a liking to him or his acting skills. There were a couple of familiar faces on the cast list, with the likes of Mike Manning and Bonnie Aarons. I will say that the actors and actresses, in general, put on good performances throughout the course of the movie.

"The Bell Keeper" is the type of horror movie that you watch once, then bag and tag it, never to bring it out for a second viewing. While it was an adequately watchable movie, it was by no means a scary horror movie. And I think that was mainly because of the non-distinct killer that the Hank character (played by Randy Couture) was.

My rating of "The Gate Keeper" lands on an four out of ten stars.

There are so many low budget horror films on streaming serviced these days, I don't bother reviewing the majority of them because I can't actually be bothered to watch them all the way through. At first glance, 'The Bell Keeper' seemed like it may be just another one of those that I turned off after about half an hour.

It opens with the typical horror setup: a group of friends (one of which always struck me of a young-ish Edward Furlong - if you know your 'Terminator 2' cast!) stumbles upon a dark legend, strange happenings ensue, and we're thrust into a familiar formula of haunted woods at night. The start is serviceable, with just enough suspense to keep you watching, though you may feel you've seen it all before. But surprisingly, midway through, 'The Bell Keeper' throws in a bit of a curve ball - I thought it was going one way when it actually goes another.

Instead of trudging through predictable tropes, it veers into (slightly!) fresher territory, offering an unexpectedly engaging take that may just keep you invested. This change in direction at least does a little more to make the movie stand out from the sea of horror films that struggle to maintain any originality. The film balances a new twist on its mythos with solid character moments, ultimately creating an atmosphere that is intriguing enough to finish. It may not be groundbreaking or a must-see, but it's refreshingly watchable - especially in a genre overflowing with unwatchable entries. If you're in the mood for a horror movie that tries something different, even if it doesn't always succeed, 'The Bell Keeper' is worth a watch (and, is it just me, or were the film-makers hoping this would become some sort of franchise?).

Not much of a plot here.. all we really need to know is that there is a cursed bell that random adventurers go and ring, and that's bad. A dude named Hank with a cauliflower ear is gonna kill those in range to hear it. There is a reason for all this, but you have to watch it to find out why. It's pretty cheap, draggy and nonsensical, but it does have just enough quirkiness to keep it mildy entertaining. We have Randy Couture, with a straight forward performance, and a quick run in with Bonnie Aarons (The Nun) being the most fun. The Liam and Brittany characters were decent, the Sheriff being the worst. Couture groupies might like this the most.