There are many faces to horror, and some old tricks can become new again if done masterfully. The Hell House LLC trilogy is one of those unique movies that leave a mark and relaunched the found footage style for the better.
The Official Summary
Hell House LLC
Five years after an unexplained malfunction causes the death of fifteen tour-goers and staff on the opening night of a Halloween haunted house tour, Hell House, a documentary film crew visits the scene of the tragedy to investigate what really happened that night.
Hell House LLC II: The Abaddon Hotel
It’s been eight years since the opening night tragedy of Hell House LLC, and even so, many unanswered questions remain.
Thanks to an anonymous tip, investigative journalist Jessica Fox is convinced that key evidence is hidden inside the abandoned Abaddon Hotel, evidence that will shed light on the hotel’s mysteries. She assembles a team equally hungry for answers with one goal: break into the hotel and discover the truth.
Hell House LLC III: Lake Of Fire
Nine years after the tragic events of Hell House, the Abaddon Hotel will once again be open to the public. Billionaire Russell Wynn has taken his audience-interactive show, Insomnia, into an abandoned hotel.
Russell invites journalist Vanessa Shepherd to film an exclusive behind-the-scenes production documentary. What she uncovers will shed light on Russell’s true intentions for relocating his show to the Abaddon Hotel and the evil waiting to be unleashed.
My Hell House LLC Trilogy Summary
When Alex receives a call for an opportunity in the northern New York State town of Abaddon to open his Halloween house attraction, Hell House LLC, he takes it without question.
Hell House LLC travels the New York State, but not always at its best. His team, made up of his friends and girlfriend, agreed to follow him after the fiasco of the year before. This time had to be different to put them back on the map as the best-haunted attraction for Halloween.
When arriving at the abandoned Abaddon Hotel, which I can mention here is the name of a quite special demon, they find a box with barred windows. The team wasn’t sure what would be inside and what they found had their soul jump out of their skin.
Alex refuses to shut down the attraction for a secret he won’t reveal at all costs. Only his best friend, Andrew, knows. But when strange unexplainable occurrences multiply, and the grand opening of the Hell House LLC happens, the news, authorities, and first responders arrive only to find people that vanished and people running out in terror, unable to explain what took place before their eyes.
The Hell House LLC Continues
The second movie takes place eight years after the original movie. The founder, Alex, and his team vanished, and speculations about the CEO’s debts surfaced. People believe they disappeared because of his error in management. However, not everything adds up.
Over eight years, social media had one dare: go to the Abaddon Hotel and record a quick live tour of yourself inside the building. Most people found disappearances of those who took the dare and videos suggesting that evil lurked in the hotel.
In the first movie, a journalist, Diane, welcomes Alex’s girlfriend, Sara, who says she hid with her family having psychological issues after what happened. She brings a bag of all the recordings taken at the Abaddon Hotel to the table.
Hell House LLC II Keeps On Giving!
While a journalistic team member watches the recordings, Sara answers questions and leaves afterwards, letting them know she stayed at the local hotel in the 2C room. Little did the journalist and her cameraman know Sara meant the Abaddon hotel…
The sequel takes you on a journey with the tech guy, Mitchell, who worked with Diane and the cameraman when interviewing Sara. But Mitchell never went to the Abaddon hotel and instead tried to warn Diane that Sara died stabbed at the hands of her possessed friend, Paul, who then slashed his throat. Sadly, it didn’t stop Diane from trespassing on the Abaddon property, and ever since, she has belonged to the hotel with the cameraman.
Invited to a morning show, Mitchell sits by the city’s D.A., Andrew and a psychic television medium, Brock. The host, Suzy, was in the first movie, and we find her again in this sequel interviewing those three characters with their personal agenda regarding the hotel.
However, one woman, Jessica, and her team are determined to discover the truth about the place. They don’t believe in ghosts and the paranormal. They believe in some conspiracy regarding the disappearance of the Hell House LLC team. Sadly, all they find is proof that demons exist.
The End To The Hell House LLC’s Story…as of yet…
Hell House III concludes the saga and the end of the Abaddon Hotel. The story revolves around a billionaire character named Russell Wynn, an artistic, theatrical director. He buys the Abaddon Hotel and has his crew perform in the building without changing its appearance. His rendition of the interactive theatre piece, Insomnia, had everyone in love with the story across the country.
Everyone knows the Hell House LLC story, the disappearances that followed, the journalists and ex-tech Mitchell, and the psychic disappearances. The same channel that hosted the show a year earlier has Suzy gone and replaced by a newer reporter, Vanessa.
Despite his charisma and charm, Vanessa notices Russell seems to hide something from his crew and actors. She digs deeper into the Abaddon story and follows Russell to a local church. The entire acting crew receives a personal portable camera to keep at all times to record all events at the hotel.
Vanessa finds out that he made a spectacular donation to the parish. The date of the contribution coincides with the opening night of Insomnia. It was no coincidence.
New York’s Scariest Haunted House Tour.
Hell House LLC
Russell tries his best to convince Vanessa to leave the hotel and forget about the story. Once a journalist, always a journalist. Despite her fears, she remains in the hotel but finds out that the horror that took place, Russell, was there to undo it.
Apparition of the original crew from the first movie and the sequel appear throughout the movie and has Vanessa questioning reality. When everything ends, and Russell vanishes with all that was evil, one question remains, if demons exist, do angels exist too?
One Ticket To Hell House LLC, Please!
When I first watched Hell House LLC, I was instantly pulled into Abaddon town. The movie starts with various people interviewed by a faceless host. When Sara appeared on screen and the videos started playing, I immediately wanted to know the hotel inside and out.
The characters are distinct, but not so that it wouldn’t be natural for them to be friends. The friendship is as believable as their enterprise. We witness them at their best and their worst.
No shaky cameras! They recorded the found footage well because they appointed one actor to journal everything for their business website.
The intensity of the trilogy revolves around the basement where demonic rituals once performed were never closed. When one performs a ritual, one must bring it to a closure so that no evil resides in the place or forms a gateway. Clearly, the sect wanted a gateway, which they received. The Abaddon Hotel became a landmark for demons to have fun.
In the basement, we see ‘demonic’ but recognisable symbols of magic and something often affiliated with demon worshipping.
Against one of the stone walls, we have three life-sized dummy clowns and one of them, I promise, will haunt your dreams forever. That clown even received the title of the creepiest clown in a horror movie!
The Storyline Chronology And Consistency
Because Hell House LLC is a trilogy, the chronological storyline must maintain an objective and coincide with the first movie. Hell House LLC checks all boxes. The story continues at a regular and believable pace that I believe helps the viewer enjoy the ride.
Each character shows up in the previous movie, so seeing them in the second and third instalments makes sense. Every character has a place and a role to play to bring the story to its inevitable conclusion.
Also, the original team shows up in each movie with extra elements. While the third and final movie was weak compared to the original movie and its sequel, the ending brings satisfaction and peace, which is rare for a horror movie.
I quickly forgot the found footage factor because the story was engaging and pulled me in immediately. People that aren’t found footage fans, I dare you to watch Hell House LLC and not enjoy it on any level, if not the story itself.
The story’s chronological line is so realistic that it wouldn’t surprise me if someone told me it was real. It is that believable of a story!
The Eerie Hotel And Its Demonic Presence
Much of the horror encountered in the movie trilogy is with demons infesting the hotel and the souls they devoured, i.e., previous tenants and owners. The shadows in the camera’s corner, strange behaviour from Sara, who suddenly sleepwalks, a clown dummy that moves on its own, ropes holding equipment turned into a hangman’s noose, etc.
Like any possessed estate, it starts slowly, as demons must rebuild their strength before having enough strength to feed. Also, they need one vessel to use.
The first movie has you believe Sara is the vessel with her strange behaviour, but no. Paul is attacked by this horrifying previous human who turned into a demon and is the ‘spreader’ of the demonic infestation.
Sara is the messenger, as all demonic places or buildings need a messenger to spread the news and lure people to the landmark. She brings the videos to the journalist investigating the Abaddon Hotel and the fate of Hell House LLC.
The intensity with which they delivered each scene is perfect. The director knew how and when to hit hard and when to keep it low. It created a rollercoaster of emotions. There is no cheap jump scare or obvious ‘no reception’ on the perimetre. In fact, there is reception because of the online dare!
The Acting And Delivery Of The Story
Hell House LLC is a gem, and every actor should have some applause from us, the viewers! The actors are phenomenal! We are talking about a found footage trilogy with a low budget from a small production house, and it’s better acted than big mainstream action movies in theatres.
The director is also the writer, Stephen Cognetti, and the production company was Cognetti Films. It was exclusive to the horror streaming service, Shudder but is now widely available and free on Tubi. However, the trilogy itself is still on Shudder.
They released the first movie in 2015. The sequel was exclusive to Shudder in 2018, and the third and final instalment in 2019.
Hell House LLC generally has a high rating for entertainment, especially in the Horror Community. It often scores over 8 out of 10 for appreciation. Despite the found footage genre often receiving negative reviews, Hell House LLC relaunched the category with a top bar to level to.
Any Hellish Final Thoughts?
I highly recommend the viewing of Hell House LLC Trilogy. It is perfect for the Halloween season and gives the perfect number of chills! As a professional demonologist, I can assure you that no demons will cross your small screen into your house!
I watch the trilogy twice a year, at least, and own the DVDs because I am too scared that one day they will disappear and it will leave me without them! Those three movies are gems and deserve much more recognition than they have. Note: I only found the DVDs on eBay and Amazon.
I love promoting the work of smaller companies and actors, indies and their fantastic entertainment. Hell House LLC is a work of horror art, and I tend to spread the word as much as possible! Now, go to your TV, turn on Tubi or Shudder for the full trilogy, and enjoy the story of Abaddon’s fictional New York town!
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