What are my thoughts about House of Darkness?

Just not sure.

I like Justin Long. He has done some interesting work over the years. Of course, he was not playing a character here that is meant to be likeable. Unfortunately, Justin Long is very likeable, which played against the character’s type.

Justin Long played Hap, a guy who was out at the bar and met a lovely woman named Mina (Kate Bosworth) and offered to give her a ride to her secluded home. When arriving, they went inside for a drink and to see where the evening would go. Strange things began to happen as the night moved along and Hap learned that they were not alone and that everything might not be exactly what he expected.

I was both interested and bored at this movie. The first two-thirds of the film was spent talking and exchanging dialogue among the characters. Some of it was decent, but much of it felt repetitive and lacked any true cohesiveness.

Things picked up a bit when Mina’s sister Lucy (Gia Crovatin) showed up. Her monologue involving a story was probably the most intense part of the evening. Lucy Walters joined in as sister number three later.

I’m not sure who the film wanted me to root for. I was with Hap, even though he was a little slimy. He certainly was not as bad as he could have been.

The movie felt too long for what happened. It felt like this could have been done in 30-40 minutes and not lose much of what was here. It did a pretty decent job of setting a tone as Hap grew more and more uncomfortable with his situation.

House of Darkness was a movie that took a big chance and tried something different, which I liked, but it did not hit the mark enough to really love it. There are positive things, but they get lost in the slow burn of a tale.

2.75 stars