THE HAUNTING LODGE: Movie Review By Matt Boiselle

Starring: John Dougherty, Jill Morris, Kendall Whelpton

Directed by: Kendall & Vera Whelpton

I think that I can speak for the multitudes when I truly believe that when anyone gets their hands on some semi-pricy “ghost-hunting” equipment on Amazon that they firmly entrench themselves in the belief that they’re professionals. Maybe some have put in the time and come across some simply remarkable footage that is too good to shelve as phony or fake…so goes the “don’t pee on my leg and tell me it’s raining” quote. I just finished up THE HAUNTING LODGE from Kendall & Vera Whelpton, and I’ve got to be honest: as opposed to watching this 1 hour assault against my consciousness again, I’d rather have the “rain” on my leg. Let’s jump into the abyss and see if we can pull something out that faintly possesses a pulse, shall we?

With both Whelptons pulling double-duty as focal points in front of and behind the screen as they take their investigative tactics to a haunted hunting lodge that was constructed in 1913, and has sat dormant until its restoration by a man (Dan Giles) whose father was the original owner. Needless to say, Dan’s business has been suffering after a rash of supposed hauntings and eerie occurrences…SO, WHO YA GONNA CALL? As you would imagine, it doesn’t take long before the equipment is in place and a medium is brought in to analyze & interpret…then the lights flicker, the doors creak open and we hear what seems like a half a dozen stories about heavy boots on the floor – all of which happen within a span of 45 minutes or so.

With the presentation only running around an hour, I honestly thought that the actions would ramp up and we all would be nuts-deep in paranormal activity – I mean if you like eyeballing blades of grass during the prime grow-season then you’ll more than likely be riveted until the credits roll. Other than that, there’s no more “shocking footage” here outside of what could already be found on one of the hundreds of ghost-hunting shows that are littering the airwaves currently. In conclusion (thankfully), if you’re a fan of these types of displays, by all means indulge & enjoy, but for the rest of us who’ve endured this stuff for far too long it’s simply a matter of “lather, rinse & repeat.”

Author

Matt Boiselle

At the tender age of 6, Matt was indoctrinated into the horror genre by his mother, who asked him to sit down and watch "The Exorcist" with her - ever since then, it's been a blood-soaked, neon-lit, fever dream of an existence. "You don't make horror...horror makes you."

(Can't remember who came up with this quote, but he was probably off-kilter like I am).