The Hole (2009)

A pair of brothers stumble upon a mysterious hole in their basement that leads to the darkest corridors of their fears and nightmares.

Director:

Joe Dante

Writer:

Mark L. Smith

Stars:

Chris Massoglia, Haley Bennett, Nathan Gamble

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Chris Massoglia	...	Dane
Haley Bennett	...	Julie
Nathan Gamble	...	Lucas
Teri Polo	...	Susan
Bruce Dern	...	Creepy Carl
Quinn Lord	...	Annie Smith
John DeSantis	...	Monster Dad (as John Desantis)
Douglas Chapman	...	Normal Dad (as Doug Chapman)
Mark Pawson	...	Travis
Peter Shinkoda	...	Young Cop
Jonathan Bruce	...	Mover
Merritt Patterson	...	Jessica (as Merrit Patterson)
Ali Cobrin	...	Tiffany
Chelsea Ricketts	...	Whitney
Chord Overstreet	...	Adam

Storyline

Susan and her sons Dane and Lucas Thompson move from Brooklyn to Bensonville, in the countryside. Dane is upset with the constant changes of address and the family has lived in many cities. Lucas and Dane befriend their next door neighbor, the gorgeous Julie and the brothers find a bottomless hole in the basement of their house locked with several padlocks. They take the locks off and soon they are haunted by their darkest fears. Further, they believe that the hole might be a gateway to hell.

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Plot Keywords:

greatest fear | fear | hole | basement | family relationships | 

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Taglines:

What Are You So Afraid Of?

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Genres:

Fantasy | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for frightening images, violence and some language

Did You Know?

Trivia

Joe Dante's first film in seven years.

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Goofs

When Julie is reading her book in bed, the power briefly goes out, along with her music. However, when she falls off her bed, you can briefly catch a glimpse of her iPod, which does not require a wall outlet to function and thus, should not have stopped playing music when the power went down.

Clearly the Evil affects all Electrical appliances/equipment so the power going off on her iPod would be perfectly acceptable.

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Quotes

[last lines]
Susan: When I was a little girl I was pretty scared of a monster that I thought was under my bed.
Lucas: Uh oh...

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Crazy Credits

Still images of the cast appear on the end credits. The depths of the hole provide the backdrop for the end credits.

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Connections

References Cat's Eye (1985)

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Soundtracks

Nitro
Written by Bradley Keys, Patrick McCallum, Elliot Blair
Performed by Cool Catz
Published by Rocket-it-Records (ASCAP)
Courtesy of Cool Catz

User Reviews

Not for kids!

The great thing about Dante's latest feature (his first in 7 years) is that it's so disarming. The look, feel and tone all tells you this a family-friendly kids flick, in the same vane as The Goonies and Explorers. In fact, I first heard this movie pitched as a gentle introduction to horror for tweens. This film, however, is definitely not suitable for a 12 year old.

Dante is renowned for having his tongue lodged firmly in his cheek, his movies very much anarchic in tone and content (Gremlins being a perfect example). The Hole is much more tempered than this, and the first two thirds are a genuine masterclass in ratcheting up fear and tension. Sure, there are plenty of jump shocks, but Dante cleverly places his camera close to the characters, leaving most of the background hidden so you never see what's coming.

The lead characters are all very good, and the initial scenes with Dane and the girl-next-door feel realistically stilted (as you would if you were a teenager and you just met the cute babe next door). Dante doesn't hang about, and quickly gets to the hole. This in turn immediately opens up all manner of scares, with some dark and genuinely frightening scenes, extremely well executed.

Dante borrows heavily from the likes of The Grudge, Poltergeist and The Sixth Sense, as well as affectionate nods to his own films (Gremlins, Small Soldiers and even It's A Good Life, a segment he directed for Twilight Zone The Movie). However, none of it feels ripped-off. It has its own inimitable style and is expertly put together, complementing the story.

For me, the final act was a little wacky but the overall movie is a satisfying experience. Considering its influences and the fact that Dante has been in the game for over 30 years, this is a surprisingly fresh addition to the genre.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Netherlands]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 June 2010 (Italy)

Also Known As:

The Hole 3D

Filming Locations:

Kittanning, Pennsylvania, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$12,000,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$10,457,002

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bold Films, BenderSpink, The Hole

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1