History of Evil

I recently watched History of Evil (2024) on Shudder. The storyline unfolds in a post-apocalyptic society devastated by civil war, where the US government has been overthrown. A group of rebels attempting to sneak an activist under the radar find themselves trapped in a haunted house. The ghost(s) in the house causes some of them to flip perspectives which threatens everyone's lives.

This film, written and directed by Bo Mirhosseni in his directorial debut, features Jackie Cruz (Orange is the New Black), Paul Wesley (The Vampire Diaries), Rhonda Johnson Dents (Renfield), Murphee Bloom (Clock), and Thomas Francis Murphy (12 Years a Slave).

While it had a promising start reminiscent of "The Handmaid's Tale," the haunted elements fell short for me, particularly with a less-than-creepy misogynistic ghost. The characters' reactions felt oddly handled, leading to a rapid deterioration of the storyline after the initial setup. The horror elements lacked intensity, and there was a shortage of impactful kills.

In conclusion, History of Evil fails to deliver in any area, making it a waste of time. I would give it a 3/10 and recommend skipping it.

Anyone paying any sort of attention would have gotten the message without it. But with it, the film ends on a heavy-handed, overwrought, redundant and corny note.

Other than that, it is fairly obvious metaphor horror destined to rile those who empathize with the BBEG here.

The Vampire Diaries guy is okay. The mixing of techno-future dystopia and ghosty past is kinda cool. There is a matte-finish black truck with people riding in it. And a commercial for white sugar. I did notice that several of the supports for the wrap-around porch of the house were in need of repair. Seemed kinda like a safety hazard - all things considered.

One of the worst movies I have seen in a very long time. I can not describe how bad it truly is. There is no need for me to be more verbose. The actors have clearly chosen a career that is not suitable for them, with the exception of the older gentleman who played the ghost\malevolent spirit. He was the only thing worth watching, and there was not enough of him.

It is so tiring to see these types of uninspired films being released all the time. This movie doesn't even know what it is, or what it's trying to say. It just vaguely alludes to trendy, triggering topics in a way that will appeal only to children raised on a diet of internet memes and tik tok videos.

I have to preface this by saying I'm not the biggest horror movie fan. However, I really wanted to give this one a shot. While the atmosphere is quite intense throughout the movie and the plot moves reasonably fast, there were some big flaws with the characters.

The couple has barely any chemistry even in the beginning of the movie and the mother seems quite uninterested in her daughter. Therefore, it's really hard to be invested in their story, feel sorry for them or root for any of them.

The movie had potential, but it was executed quite poorly. Even so, it's not the worst movie out there and if you really just want to watch something I say you can give it a try.

When I stumbled upon this 2024 movie from writer and director Bo Mirhosseni, I had never actually heard about it. But that hardly mattered, as it being a movie that I hadn't already seen was sufficient enough to make me opt to sit down and watch it. And thus, I had zero idea what I was in for.

It was a little bit difficult to delve into the storyline and concept of the movie, because there simply wasn't sufficient information to make it believable. So it was not an easy movie to enjoy. The whole thing about some resistance fighting against a nation-wide regime just never came off as being believable at any point throughout the course of the 98 minutes that the movie ran for.

The movie is listed as a horror/thriller, but it was a pretty weak one at that. Perhaps if you are a newcomer to the horror and thriller genres, then the movie might actually come off as being either of the two, if not actually both. But for a life-long horror fan, then "History of Evil" just didn't cut it.

I actually wasn't familiar with the cast ensemble in the movie, aside from Thomas Francis Murphy, but they did have a good ensemble of talents put together to portray the characters and bring the story to life on the screen. The acting performances were good.

"History of Evil" was by no means a movie that captured my interest, much less provided me with much of any entertainment. And truth be told, I gave up on the ordeal 52 minutes into the movie. I just couldn't take much more of the boredom by then. This is definitely not a movie that I will return to attempt finish watching. Nor is it a movie that I would recommend for horror or thriller fans.

My rating of "History of Evil" lands on a three out of ten stars.