| Boys from County Hell | |
| Director: | Chris Baugh |
| Producer: | Brendan Mullin, Yvonne Donohoe |
| Cinematography: | Ryan Kernaghan |
| Editing: | Brian Philip Davis |
| Music: | Steve Lynch |
| Country: | Ireland |
| Language: | English |
| Runtime: | 89 minutes |
Boys From County Hell is a 2020 vampire comedy horror film.[1] [2]
Set in Six Mile Hill, a fictional backwater town, whose only claim to fame is that Bram Stoker stayed there once and based Dracula on the local legend of Abhartach. When Abhartach is awakened after the cairn over his remains is demolished due to the preparation for bypass already unpopular with the locals, the construction team that demolished the cairn must set out to make it right.[1]
The film is directed by Chris Baugh, who also co-wrote the film with Brendan Mullin, expanding on a previous short film of the same name.[2] [3] Screen Ireland and Northern Ireland Screen were among the funders of the film.
Boys From County Hell received its world premiere at the 2020 Tribeca Film festival.[4]
The film has a rating of on Rotten Tomatoes based on reviews with the consensus "Boys from County Hell stands out as an uncommonly good time in the crowded vampire genre -- and proves the Irish countryside is a fine setting for slaying the undead."[5] Writing in The Guardian, Phil Hoad found that the film, although inventive and amusing, did not always successfully mesh its comedy and horror aspects.[1] Jordan King in Empire magazine also applauded its inventiveness, but also praised the depth of characterisation, describing it as "a playful yet surprisingly poignant vampire yarn that takes on folklore, familial turmoil, and the perils of poor town-planning with aplomb."[2]
At the 2021 Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival, Baugh and the film won the jury prize for best European Fantastic Film.[6]