Well... I've had my eye on Mr. Hush for quite some time. The box art is pretty cool, and the description on Amazon says it's a "frightening throwback to the slasher films of the 1980s..." I don't think it is. Mr. Hush plays like someone asked the following question: "What if we made a horror movie, but instead of the villains being scary or intimidating or cool, we just made them really annoying?" It tries to be funny and clever, but ends up just being grating. I won't spoil just *what* Mr. Hush is supposed to be - hence the question mark label. But the screencap above gives you a hint. And it isn't rabbits - that's what I guessed at first. Because they look like carrots, yeah?
Anyways, it's odd that Mr. Hush unfolds as comedically as it does, because the first act is basically a somber tale about a Man Who Has It All (a loving wife, a great kid, always happy, and celebrating Halloween) And Then Loses It. Holland Price (Brad Loree) is chilling at home on Halloween night when a priest comes to the door, saying his bus has broken down and asking if he can use the phone. Except I don't think he's a real priest, because he kills Holland's wife and daughter. Holland just gets bonked on the head, and the assailant lets him live.
Flash forward 10 or so years - Holland is still haunted by the murder of his family, and lives a simple life. He's got a job washing dishes and lives in a tent. But his tent-mate insists he has to move on, and he seems to have some chemistry with Debbie, who waits tables at the restaurant where he works. So Holland and Debbie start a relationship, and it seems to be going really well.
So honestly, that's kind of like the first 35-40 minutes of the movie. Kind of a long set-up, no? It feels more like an awkward indie drama (although the performances are above average) than a horror film. Until (semi-*SPOILERS* for a movie I think you shouldn't see) the same dude shows up and murders Debbie while Holland is hanging out there. And you should be able to guess by now that this guy is Mr. Hush. Instead of bonking Holland on the head and leaving him, this time Mr. Hush takes Holland back to his place and ties him up in his basement, where he can "torture" him... with his Bad Comedy and Overacting! (Seriously, he taunts him and kills people in front of him - but the comedy is the worst.)
Mr. Hush himself is played by Edward X. Young - from the also bad Sea of Dust. I kind of get what they are going for - a more humorous take on the [redacted] legend, but it just doesn't work here. He comes of as a poor man's Daryl Hammond, and I just don't like his schtick. And he's got this even more aggravating sidekick named Stark (Stephen Geoffreys of Fright Night fame). I'm thinking he's going for some kind of impish/cackling lackey thing, but my goodness - it was pretty much torture whenever he was on screen. And that about sums up the baddies here - I think writer-director David Lee Madison had it in his head that this would a horror-comedy (after all, the character of Holland is almost certainly named after Tom Holland, the creator of Fright Night), but the comedy just doesn't work.
And the horror doesn't really work either. There isn't much by way of gore or tension... and really, there isn't much of an attempt at either. Other than Holland's wife and girlfriend, Mr. Hush only takes out one other victim. So there's kind of a serial killer vibe with Holland being tied up in the basement, but the kills you get are really, really weak.
What works? Honestly, I was actually kind of digging the drama stuff in the first half of the film. I really liked Loree's performance as Holland. He's a charismatic actor, and played the role with the right amount of sadness and anger - and he even sells strange dialogue well. (Holland seems preoccupied with how Mr. Hush smells). I was kind of interested in seeing how this guy would get his act together. Oddly, I think the dramatic aspects of the film highlight the low-budgetness even more than the horror stuff - I mean, once the horror S. hits the F. you are pretty much just relegated to one location. When they venture elsewhere, the film doesn't look nearly as good. But even still, the film has a cast of supporting characters that are really quite enjoyable - special mention must go to Steve Dash as restauranteur Mac - he's a bit of a tough-guy stereotype, but he's quite funny. I also liked Holland's friend, but he's not listed on imdb, so I can't give you his name. There's some kid named Tim Dougherty that I don't remember from the movie, so maybe it's Tim Doherty. imdb messed up, maybe?
So yes, I would rather talk about imdb than Mr. Hush. It's an admirable attempt at horror-comedy, but ultimately it just doesn't work. The horror is weak and the comedy is annoying. I think you have to get at least one of those right.
I would not recommend this film.
Oh, and also, since Mr. Hush throws a random scene at you *after* the end of the movie, I thought I'd talk about it here. Brian O'Halloran (best known as Dante from Clerks) is apparently Holland's brother and wanders around a wooded area for five minutes. There is technically a pay-off, but it's really, really bad. I honestly don't even know what this is in the movie for. I feel like someone said "we can get O'Halloran for a day - let's use him!" It's useless and I wish I hadn't even noticed it.
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