Bloody Hell follows a man who, following a heroic counterattack on a group of bank robbers that landed him in prison, decides to head to the Finland countryside to escape the controversial publicity of his past. Unfortunately, after landing in the foreign land, he quickly becomes the target of a sadistic family and must find a way to escape, with the help of his split personality.
[This movie was seen on Shudder at the time of this review.]
Bloody Hell Review
The way I have found myself describing Bloody Hell to others is that it's the most fun I can imagine watching someone hang from a basement ceiling for an hour. A good portion of the runtime follows our protagonist hanging in a basement. And while that sounds boring and uneventful, the writing from Robert Benjamin and delivery from Ben O'Toole are so clever and entertaining, that I was surprised at my realization an hour plus into the movie that we'd spent a majority of the time watching a man hanging from a ceiling.
This horror comedy verging on dark comedy gives vibes of a more realistic and grounded Evil Dead. No, there aren't any supernatural elements, but the dark comedy, violent slapstick, and corny dynamics make you feel like you're watching Ash in some slasher spin-off scenario.
The storytelling is engaging and well-paced throughout, with little or no complaints in that department. Bloody Hell may not be seen as an award-winning piece of filmmaking, and it rarely scratches the itch of someone looking for the horror elements that tend to follow a horror comedy, but it's a highly entertaining and rather hilarious throughout.
It's too bad it went under our radar during its initial release back in 2020, but had we spotted it, I bet it would've made a top-10 list. This type of sharp, witty filmmaking is hard not to enjoy for a wide audience that can tolerate a little dark humor.
It is well known that I value rewatchability in movies, and I found this movie to have quite a bit of that. Exhibit A: I was happy to sit down and watch it with anyone I recommended it to.
Horror Rating System
Horror Qualifier: 7/10
Horror Quality: 7/10
Film Quality: 7/10