torrascotia I was at a Q&A with the director Joe Dante and the topic of this movie came up. Its clear that this film has been missed by many due to its lack of distribution. However its well worth your time if you can track it down. Its basically a teen psychological horror which has themes from a number of 80s horrors like IT, Puppetmaster, The Gate and Paperhouse. It was originally a 3D movie however its still watchable in 2D. Theres a few old faces from previous Dante movies although the rest of cast may be new to you but they all do a great job. I'd recommend this as a family/teen fun horror that wont give the kids nightmares.....unless they have a thing about clowns.

poe426 In the televersion of Stephen king's IT, we find that Pennywise the Clown (very well played by Tim Curry) is able to tap into and make manifest the deepest and darkest of childhood fears. It wasn't all that original an idea back then, and it's even less so after all these years- yet that's the gist of THE HOLE. This is Horror Light at its worst. There's not a single character worth investing in in this movie: all of the Child Actors come across as Child Actors as they recite some of the BLANDEST, most uninteresting lines ever spoken- and the kid called "Smooch" was the worst of the bunch. Bruce Dern (who was completely forgettable in another recent misfire, NEBRASKA) is just going through the motions in a bit part. The production values are impressive, indeed, but that's not enough to make this one worth the time it takes to get through it. Dante can do better.

Film Watchin Fool Why You Might Like It: This is a pretty solid thriller/horror film that will spark your interest early and keep you watching. The suspense of what is in the "Hole" will keep you entertained and there is a serviceable amount of creepy/scary moments. I thought the overall story was well done and played out well on the screen. This film has a nice pace to it and is likely to keep most viewers entertained.Why You Might Not Like It: I think the biggest problem with the film is the fact that it doesn't seem to have a targeted audience. It seems a bit too serious/creepy for kids, but not serious/creepy enough for adults. There were also scenes toward the end that I thought were a bit too much, which made them seem more goofy than scary. The acting in spots is noticeable and bad, but it doesn't ruin the movie.Acting/Casting: 4.5* Directing/Cinematography/Technical: 6*Plot/Characters: 5.5* Entertainment Value: 6* Total - 4.5+6+5.5+6 = 22/4 = 5.5*

Leofwine_draca A highly disappointing children's horror film, especially so given the calibre of cult director Joe Dante. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that this is Dante's worst film, at least of the ones I've (usually) had the pleasure of watching so far.The big problem with THE HOLE is the script, written by the same guy who brought us VACANCY and VACANCY 2. It has the same paucity of imagination as either of those movies; I feel that the writer was brought up on the fun-filled adventures of the 1980s and tries to recapture the same spirit here, but despite flashes of inspiration the results never gel.Not that Dante doesn't try; indeed there are occasional glimpses of his old magic at work, but they're few and far between. The first half of the film is the best, a slow exercise in gradual build-up that benefits from a decent performance from the child actor Nathan Gamble. Unfortunately, that same slowness continues into the second half, where the promise of a spectacular denouement never arrives and it all ends in the most lacklustre way imaginable.The horror is limited to old tropes borrowed from the likes of POLTERGEIST and THE RING and there's no imagination to be found anywhere. The CGI effects are pretty poor and although I saw this in 2D it appeared that the 3D wasn't up to much either. Altogether a very poor effort from a usually reliable source.