The Hamiltons (2006)

Directors:

Mitchell Altieri
Phil Flores

Writers:

Mitchell Altieri (writer)
Phil Flores (writer)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Every Family Has Its Secrets

Plot:

Four young adult siblings try to fend for themselves after the mysterious death of their parents. But...

Plot Keywords:

Gagged And Bound | Brother Brother Relationship | Slap In The Face | Brother Sister Incest | Cage

Cast

Cory Knauf	...	Francis Hamilton
Samuel Child	...	David Hamilton
Joseph McKelheer	...	Wendell Hamilton
Mackenzie Firgens	...	Darlene Hamilton
Rebekah Hoyle	...	Samantha Teal
Brittany Daniel	...	Dani Cummings
Al Liner	...	Paul Glenn
Jena Hunt	...	Kitty Davies (as Jenna Hunt)
Tara Glass	...	Jenna Smith
Larry Laverty	...	Larry Davies
Joe Egender	...	Allen Davies
Nicholas Fanella	...	Lenny Hamilton
Jackie Honea	...	Mrs. Hamilton
John Krause	...	Mr. Hamilton
Nathan Parker	...	Hot Pants

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence, language and some sexual content.

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R | Portugal:M/16 | Argentina:16 | Finland:K-15

Filming Locations:

Petaluma, California, USA

Company:

San Francisco Independent Cinema

Quotes:

[first lines]
Francis Hamilton: What does it mean to be happy? To be content in the world around you? Mom used to say it was family. That family was the heart of everything, even existence. Without it, there's nothing. She would always have these simple answers that somehow would sound so brilliant...

Amateur

Without effective indulgence of the supernatural or the poetic motivating nuances of humanity, all this creative team has to hope for is effective usage of its middling, unoriginal elements. 'Party of Five' gone maniacal then genetically unescapable there's little rooting interest because the singular non-homicidal element is a second-rate bland awful-acting 'Wes Bentley' mopester. In fact, all of the acting is skin deep. Even though the dark-haired women appeal, the salaciousness is kept to a minimum. No nudity here. Also lacking are sufficient buckets of blood. All sensations are kept at a teasing, safe distance...an unfortunate fact considering the given name of the directors is 'butcher.' Only the soundtrack, the droning angsty alt-country and the tense fluctuating score provide any palpable tension. Sometimes some static storyboarded compositions add appealing low-angles that adds to the malaise...but for a film that calls itself horror, I did not even get close to flinching once. Perhaps a greater emphasis on societal rejuvenation through blood intake, scenes directed with varying geometric shapes outside the square, and a sustained focus on playfulness through the family's maliciousness or traps sympathetic characters need to escape in order to escape their dilemma would have improved my opinion, but this was not a good start to my excursion through horrorfest.