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21 out of 23 people found the following comment useful :- Surprisingly enjoyable black comedy. Lots of fun!, 31 July 2002 Author: Infofreak from Perth, Australia
I love a good horror movie, and I love a good comedy, but very rarely do I enjoy a blending of the two. I expected 'Motel Hell' to disappoint for that reason, but much to my surprise I found it was an extremely enjoyable mixture of black humour and genuinely creepy scenes. One of the reasons the movie works so well is because of the excellent casting choice of Hollywood veteran Rory Calhoun in the lead role of eccentric farmer and Motel manager Vincent Smith. Calhoun was best known for his Westerns, though he made one of two genre movies in his long career including the very silly 'Night Of The Lepus', and the nutty 'Hell Comes To Frogtown'. 'Motel Hell' is quite different to those two, and mostly played straight, which makes it all the more effective. Calhoun is well supported by the less well known Nancy Parsons ('Porky's'), as his equally unbalanced sister. I really liked 'Motel Hell' a lot, and highly recommend it to viewers with a sick sense of humour. Fans of early Tobe Hooper movies, or some of Garth Ennis' comics will especially appreciate it. This movie is a lot of fun! Dig in!
22 out of 27 people found the following comment useful :- I Wonder about the Karmic Implications of These Acts, 28 April 2004 Author: reverendtom from Santa Cruz, CA
Motel Hell is a near perfect film. It is gross, funny, intelligent, and altogether VERY well done. There is so much great dialogue and excellent symbolism, and great acting. Rory Calhoun is the most likable evil human flesh farmer I've ever seen. There really isn't too much gore in this film, but it grosses you out on so many levels, especially if you eat meat, which I do. The ending, while being awesome in its own way, leaves a little something to be desired. All in all, if you love horror, and you have a sense of humor, check this one on out. I liked it more the second time I saw it, which is a sign of quality.
16 out of 18 people found the following comment useful :- The Texas Chainsaw Massacre meets The Beverly Hillbillies., 25 July 2001 Author: wbhickok (wbhickok@hotmail.com) from Calif.
How can anybody not love the campy awfulness of this movie. It's fantastic! I remember seeing this when I was roughly eleven or so and being freaked out by the guy wearing the pigface brandishing a chainsaw, now I just laugh as I realize how funny it all was supposed to be. A camp classic all the way!
15 out of 17 people found the following comment useful :- Smoke 'em if you got 'em!!!, 13 January 2006 Author: Coventry from the Draconian Swamp of Unholy Souls
Kevin Connor's "Motel Hell" is a tremendously fun and engaging horror comedy, impossible not to love in my humble opinion. Right from the opening sequences, the film sells itself as a light-headed and blackly humorous gem that spoofs some of the genre's biggest classics without ever disrespecting them. The references towards milestones like "Psycho" and "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" are obvious but, unlike many haters of "Motel Hell" claim, this is certainly not a rip off! I don't think you can compare the clearly humorous premise of this film, which handles about cultivating human beings to mix the meat with pork, with dead serious stories like the above mentioned "Psycho" or "TCM". Rory Calhoun, usually a western star, is terrifically cast as the traditional and likable Farmer Vincent who's a local demigod in his county, thanks to his uniquely flavored, homemade smoked ham recipe. Of course, nobody knows that Vincent and his sister Ida are totally insane and extract their secret ingredients from nothing less than people, who they "plant" in their garden. This simply is campy entertainment, very tongue-in-cheek, fast-paced and with a couple of adorably gross make-up effects. Connor's directing is solid and he makes excellent use of the typically eerie "redneck" stereotypes, such as the clumsy sheriff and the barbaric farmers. The chainsaw-battle sequence during the finale is a real hoot. Highly recommended for horror fans who don't take themselves too seriously.
9 out of 10 people found the following comment useful :- What a great masterpiece!, 17 October 1998 Author: Joe 25 from Movie Land
Rory Calhoun gives one of the best performances in his career in this masterpiece of a movie as Farmer Vincent, a man who makes meat products with "Special" ingredients. Helping him out is his sister, in a good acting job, Nancy Parsons as his sister Ida. Also rounding out the supporting cast is Bruce Linke as Cousin Bruce, and Nina Axelrod as a woman who Vincent takes in after a motorcycle accident. It also has the famous Wolfman Jack in a small role as Rev. BillyThis is a great comedic horror, and has the obviously famous line "It takes all kinds of critters to make Farmer Vincent's fritters"
11 out of 14 people found the following comment useful :- This low-budget film is a treat!, 24 September 1999 Author: troy-32 from Chicago, Illinois
"Motel Hell" just seems to work for me. It's a low-budget little nothing of a movie, but it's very fun to watch. I guess it's the way the dark content mixes with the good-natured atmosphere that makes it so compelling for me. The music, the color of the film, the episodic quality, the familiar way the characters interact, etc... Plus, Nancy Parsons is hilarious; she chooses to do self-irony in a way that makes me laugh really hard. I always wished that she, Pat Ast and scary Shirley Stoler would have done a movie together, but la Stoler is dead now... "Motel Hell" is the ideal movie to watch when you're slumming.
10 out of 13 people found the following comment useful :- Well made horror, 20 April 2005 Author: brettkiser80 from north dakota
I love this movie! Nothing beats a deranged hillbilly farmer who wears a severed hog's head to terrorize people.Rory Calhoun and Paul Linke are wonderful in their roles. Rory effectively pulls off the mild-mannered farmer with a dark secret routine, while Paul Linke handles the role of jealous cop perfectly.Nina Axelrod supplies the sex appeal, and capably I might add. Though her penchant for much older men is a little disturbing.This film has gained a solid cult following thanks to end showdown of good vs. evil, with Rory wearing that hog's head and chasing after Paul Linke with a chainsaw.
7 out of 9 people found the following comment useful :- An underrated and fun horror comedy!, 2 November 2003 Author: Snake-666 from England
The distinctive taste of Farmer Vincent's (Rory Calhoun) prime meats is renowned in the farmer's rural area. In fact people come from far and wide to sample his uniquely delicious meat treats. The only real question is why is there rarely anyone staying in his nearby motel and yet the `No Vacancy' sign is usually on? ‘Motel Hell' is a fun and somewhat graphic parody of films like ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' (1974) and ‘The Last House on the Left' (1972). By sparingly using shock tactics and graphic effects, ‘Motel Hell' plays up the more satirical aspect and keeps the viewer interested and entertained. In fact, the movie easily equals the number of shocking moments with a variety of funny and charming sequences which range from heckling televangelists to a hilarious send-up of the lives of swingers. Viewers of ‘Motel Hell' can be treated to a chainsaw duel (possible influence for ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2'), a garden of humans being prepared for harvesting, cannibalism and a particularly stomach-churning conversation about smoking dogs. This movie is without a doubt one of the most underrated movies of its era and while not being as effective, or enjoyable, as ‘Re-Animator' (1985) and ‘Evil Dead 2' (1987), it remains an intelligent, gruesome and witty horror/comedy. Unfortunately the movie tends to drag a little shortly before the final sequences which can be slightly off-putting. However, the highly enjoyable and eventful ten minutes more than make up for this brief lapse and round the film off almost perfectly. Rory Calhoun, without a shadow of a doubt, steals the show with his portrayal of the deranged yet surprisingly pleasant Vincent. Some adept scripting from Robert and Steven-Charles Jaffe give his murderous character a somewhat pleasant and appealing personality. The viewer can only laugh at the God-fearing persona that Vincent possesses as he talks about the creative and artistic way he catches stray humans to mix in with his meat. Rory is brilliantly accompanied by Nancy Parsons in the role of his overweight and slightly dim-witted sister Ida. One could even question whether Ida is supposed to be a female and slightly more intelligent version of TCM's Leatherface. The rarely seen and beautiful actress Nina Axelrod is also delightful in her role as Terry, a young woman who was caught in but survived one of Vincent's devious traps. Unfortunately the scripting for the character of Terry was rather poor and it becomes hard for the viewer to connect with her. However, given the material she had to work with, Nina put in an impressive performance and when required, added greatly to the humorous aspect of the movie. One cannot also neglect to mention Paul Linke who plays Vincent's (much) younger brother Sheriff Bruce Smith. Linke's performance, although the weakest of the main actors, is still enjoyable and provides both a villain and a hero in one. Kevin Connor's direction was of a particularly high standard although it seemed basic during the opening portions of the movie. Connor managed to capture the devilish yet fun atmosphere of the script and worked in all of the clever references to other movies seamlessly. These references (in addition to those already mentioned) included a captivating comedic illustration of ‘Night of the Living Dead' (1968) and Zombie Holocaust which was released in Italy earlier the same year. ‘Motel Hell' is probably worth watching for horror/comedy fans; though do not expect another ‘Evil Dead 2'. Thanks to some usually good scripting, above average performances and some truly side-splitting situations, ‘Motel Hell' succeeds at what it sets out to be - great fun for cheesy horror lovers! My rating for ‘Motel Hell' – 7/10.
7 out of 9 people found the following comment useful :- Great!, 13 August 1999 Author: brian-136 from somewhere near YOU!
I really enjoyed this movie! It is so funny! Rory Calhoun does an excellent job as Farmer Vincent, and I give credit to the filmmakers for concocting such a masterpiece! Rent this movie as soon as possible, you definitely want to see it before you die!
7 out of 11 people found the following comment useful :- Delicatessen and bible., 22 August 2003 Author: dbdumonteil
"Motel Hell" is certainly underrated, if only for its wonderful black humor.The couple Rory Calhoun -who used to play in westerns such as "river of no return "and now enjoys in the movie some kind of retirement in the country- and Nancy Parsons who plays his obese sister Ida shines.They use the guests of their motel as raw material for their delicious sausages :this may seem very hackneyed,but the treatment is not.Calhoun's character is certainly a villain,but he spends most of the time praying the Lord,and he couldn't indulge himself extramarital sex.There are several hilarious scenes:brother and sister whistling a gentle tune while they are doing very bad things or exchanging dead bodies,while simpering.But the best gag comes at the end when the delicatessen dealer reveals his biggest sin:watch for it,it's priceless.
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