The Attic Expeditions (2002)

To me, this movie is perfection.

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Good movie but grossly overrated

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

I've rarely felt as disappointed from watching a horror flick as after "Horror in the Attic" … I looked forward to this film because of the seemingly innovative basic premise, some of the names in the cast and the director (whose other movies "The Wizard of Gore" and "All Souls Day" intrigued me to say the least). However, it quickly becomes apparent that this is an overly ambitious – on the verge of pretentious, even – and wannabe be intellectual psychological thriller that is more confusing than compelling and much more annoying than frightening. Surely you'll encounter many reviews stating that "Horror in the Attic" is a truly amazing and brilliant film, and these are also the exact same reviews that will claim that if you don't like it, well, you don't "get it". Don't worry about that. I've seen my share of psychedelic cinema classics, including the whole oeuvres of Alejandro Jodorowsky, David Lynch and Fernando Arrabal, and let me assure you this nearly doesn't play in the same league. The plot contains a few noteworthy fresh ideas and Jeremy Kasten maintains the sinister atmosphere for quite a long time, but then the film irrevocably drowns in its own pool of pseudo-mystery and audacity. The story's protagonist, Trevor Blackburn, awakes from a coma and the (clearly capricious) Doctor Ek bluntly tells him that he remained unconscious for four years after murdering his fiancée in a pagan ritual. The house where he supposedly committed his hateful crime turned into an alternative type of sanitarium in the meantime, and naturally Trevor gets submitted here, in the good (?) care of Dr. Ek's colleague Dr. Thalama. Meandering through the house – and particularly the attic – Trevor's amnesic mind slowly begins to function again and he discovers that Dr. Ek is a manipulative crook. I'm strongly convinced that, with a slightly more straightforward scenario and a lot more bloody action, "Horror in the Attic" could have been a modest cult gem. Now it's just a largely dull, derivative and pretentious flick with only a few isolated highlights. The acting performances of the lead actors are rather forgettable… I spent the entire movie wondering where the hell I saw that guy Trevor's face before, but frustratingly didn't find the answer. Only afterwards, through clicking on his name here on the website, I remembered that he appeared in my favorite "Nightmare on the Elm Street" sequel, namely part four "The Dream Master". Seth Green's performance is a pitiable imitation of Brad Pitt in "Twelve Monkeys" and the luscious Beth Bates is only granted the opportunity to show off her beautiful body instead of her acting capacities. The supportive cast is what's most interesting here, with interesting (albeit typecast) roles for veteran actors Jeffrey Combs ("Re-Animator"), Wendie Robie ("The People Under the Stairs") and Ted Raimi ("The Evil Dead"). Perhaps the weirdest moment in this overall weird movie is the cameo appearance by rock star Alice Cooper. Keep an eye open for that!

Trevor Blackburn(Andras Jones)is an amnesiac told by his psychiatric doctor, brain specialist Dr. Ek(Jeffrey Combs as eccentric as ever)that he was an unhinged, hard-to-handle criminal who was behind the murder of his lover Faith(Beth Bates). Ek sends him to the House of Love, supposedly a mental recuperation center for others with insanity issues. Ek wishes for Trevor to regain his buried memories and place his confounding images into their proper context. What Trevor doesn't know is that Ek has cameras throughout the house, set up to study him. He has also planted actors in the house to pose as mental patients so to increase Trevor's mental collapse. What's sad is that Trevor is really nothing more than a lab animal for Ek's experimentation..tampering with his mind until he snaps. What Ek is really after is a book of magick for which Trevor only knows it's whereabouts. We also get a peek inside the madness within Trevor's mind where we see weird, often homicidal, images. We get visions of a reoccuring dream Travis has of an attic with a trunk. That trunk symbolically represents his mind..inside it is what has been locked away from him. The mystery of that book is really at the heart of this crazy little movie.Call it what you want. Wacky. Quirky. Colorful. Dizzying. Director Jeremy Kasten keeps the viewer on edge so we can experience the same hysteria like Trevor. The film even offers up the idea that Faith's being has came to life within Trevor's mind to get that book using someone in the House of Love as a host to kill him. Supposedly in that magick book is a key to immortality, but Trevor and Faith had to die together. But, you're never quite sure what is going on which is either part of the fun or agony depending on how much the viewer likes being pulled on the tail. Lots of B-actors here like Combs as the doctor, Ted Raimi as a writer who bares witness to Combs' madness and becomes threatened by him, Seth Green as "loony" Douglas who becomes a possible ally to Trevor.The film is really a visual marvel on such a low budget and a credit to imaginative filmmakers who really want to mind-screw you.

Anyone can make a disjointed tale with blood, sex and drugs, that has no plot line, has a lot of inexplicable happenings and has no tie up at the end and we are supposed to think its really deep? Is that what passes for a psychological thriller now in 2006? Spare me. I watched the whole thing and I was bored silly. It wasn't even done well enough for me to want to know what the real story was.There must be a sane starting point at either the beginning or end. it certainly won't be in the middle...Something to hang onto. This one did neither. Waste of time and I am not a kid with a short attention span. However, The I Inside with Ryan Phillipe and Robert Sean Leonard is excellent and did make me think. Check it out.

The story, which reminds me of awakening from a bad dream, makes for an interesting movie. The main character, Trevor Blackburn (Andras Jones), convicted for the murder of his fiancée, has been left in the care of psychiatrist Dr. Ek (Jeffrey Combs). As a result of Dr. Ek's treatment Trevor suffers amnesia. Viewer and main character alike are challenged with separating dream from reality as the main character pieces together his memories. There is an occult dimension in the movie but its significance is never elaborated in the open ended script. However, the script is elegant and leaves ample room for interpretation.Rather disappointingly though, the atmosphere never builds dense enough to support the story. I blame this on the hallmarks of low budget production that shine through. Acting is wooden and the set decor and make up kitschy. There is not a single interesting camera angle throughout. However, the score is quite good, as was the opening credits.Within the group of small budget horror movies I'd give this movie an eight, however, given that this is not a cult movie and there are so many better movies out there, I've settled on a 3.