| Hell House LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor | |
| Director: | Stephen Cognetti |
| Screenplay: | Stephen Cognetti |
| Producer: | Joe Bandelli |
| Starring: |
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| Cinematography: | Josh Layton |
| Studio: | Cognetti Films Marylous' Boys |
| Distributor: | Terror Films Shudder |
| Runtime: | 98 minutes |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
Hell House LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor is a 2023 American Direct-to-streaming found footage horror film written and directed by Stephen Cognetti and produced by Joe Bandelli. It simultaneously serves as a prequel to Hell House LLC (2015), and sequel to both (2018) and (2019), and is the fourth installment overall in the Hell House LLC franchise. It stars Bridget Rose Perrotta, Destiny Leilani Brown, James Liddell, Gideon Berger.[1]
The film depicts a documentary using found footage recovered from filmmaker Margot Bentley, her girlfriend Rebecca Vickers, and brother Chase Bentley. The three all died whilst spending four nights investigating Carmichael Manor, a remote house in Rockland County, New York, mentioned to be one town over from the Abaddon Hotel. The recovered footage was edited together by Margot’s friend Bradley Moynahan, who provides commentary alongside journalist Alicia Cavalini. The film’s narrative provides connections to previous films and the franchise’s lore involving the hotel and cult leader Andrew Tully. Margot and Rebecca travel to the manor to investigate the infamous Carmichael family murders that happened in 1989. The Carmichaels’ daughter Margaret, an actress, died in a car crash months before. Her sister Catherine and mother Eleanor were murdered, but her father Arthur and brother Patrick disappeared. Margot’s own interest in the paranormal began after a man in a clown costume tried to abduct her at a funfair when she was a child. Margot and Rebecca are joined by Chase, who has a history of psychosis and was drawn to help Margot following another episode. They find a locked storage room full of paraphernalia from the funfair, including three clown mannequins. Learning artifacts from the hotel are being exhibited at a local antique store, Margot and Rebecca investigate. Rebecca recognizes a grandfather clock from the hotel, finding film reels, letters, and a cross pendant in a hidden compartment. Chase is frightened by the clowns and a masked woman, convincing Margot and Rebecca that the manor is actually haunted. The recovered film reels are sent to Bradley, who includes them in the documentary, depicting footage recorded by Catherine prior to and after Margaret’s death; revealing Margaret to be the masked woman. Patrick survived the crash, but grows withdrawn and disturbed. Catherine gives him the pendant to protect him. Further footage reveals Patrick joined Tully’s cult with the hope to resurrect Margaret, moved the clowns into his bedroom, and kept Margaret’s costume as a memento. Later, the cult members invade the manor, where Catherine is killed by Margaret’s ghost. In the present, Rebecca’s presentation to a real estate partner is disrupted by Catherine’s ghost. Though Margot agrees to leave the manor in the morning, Chase disappears over night, leaving his possessions behind. Footage reveals Chase was approached in his bedroom by one of the clowns, who pursued and killed him. Margot and Rebecca leave the house, but find their car battery is dead. An attempt to walk to the nearest town through the surrounding woodland is thwarted by members of the cult, forcing the two to flee back to the manor. Disturbing text messages from Chase drive the two women to flee into the car, but the cult members surround them. Returning to the manor once again, Margot hears Chase calling for her, leaving Rebecca, who is killed by Catherine’s ghost. Margot finds Chase’s eyeless corpse, before being stalked by the clown, who corners and attacks her. Patrick is identified as the clown and the one who tried to abduct Margot as a child. In a final scene, Patrick apologises to a camera, before yelling at an unseen man to be quiet, departing through a doorway into a red-tinted room, implied to be another gate to Hell as seen in previous films.
A mid credit scene reveal Alicia mentioning the fair is coming back to town. An image of a clown is seen peeking through a window in the background.
In October 2022, Terror Films announced that Stephen Cognetti is set to continue the Hell House LLC franchise with the prequel titled Hell House LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor.[2]
On April 15, 2023, Stephen Cognetti began filming.[3]
The film had its limited release on October 24, 2023, and was released on October 30, 2023, by Shudder.[4]
Phil Hoad of The Guardian rates the film 4 out of 5 rating and he said: It isn't just Cognetti's solid deployment of the backstory that impresses; he and cinematographer Josh Layton also show a devious command of camera mechanics, vital to the subjective found-footage experience.[6] Maegan Navarro of Bloody Disgusting gave the film a rating of 3.5 over 5 and wrote: While the effective, goosebump-inducing scares and refreshing expansion of the story feel like a return to form for this franchise, The Carmichael Manor is hampered by its found footage format. The intrepid Margot makes the familiar missteps into found footage trope territory that seals her group's fate.[7]
In July 2024, a fifth installment titled was announced with a teaser trailer and will release in 2025.[8]