Plot Summary
A young couple gets more than they bargained for when they buy a historic bed and breakfast in New England only to discover that the old house is hiding a dark secret within its walls.


The Inhabitants is the most recent work of Michael and Shawn Rasmussen (The Ward, Dark Feed). The premise seems similar to many haunted house movies nowadays, but I believe this one has a finesse that puts it above the majority of films with the same theme. The scares in it are well done, with a few catching me off guard early.  The film also isn’t afraid to switch gears and bring in different angles to keep you guessing. 

The house used for filming is incredible. It gives the impression of being old that The Inhabitants wants it to have.  You believe it contains the lore of its past. Enter young couple Jessica and Dan (Elise Couture and Michael Reed), who are on a journey to fix up this old bed and breakfast so they can reopen and run it together. The two worked great together and have a lot of chemistry on film, which is pivotal since they are the only ones on screen for a majority of the movie.  There are a few other supporting roles that felt a little odd, simply because they didn’t add much to the story.  They simply existed to provide a few scares in between.

As for the story, we see it bounce around a few common tropes. Thankfully it does each of them well enough that I didn’t mind or feel like “I’ve seen this before”.  My favorite is probably how the wife is determined to learn more about the house so that she could tell stories to their new guests upon reopening. This created a genuine feel for me. Recently having stayed at my first bed and breakfast, we got a quick history lesson of the building upon arrival. Little details like this in The Inhabitants really help get you immersed in the story.  My only real complaint is that the film felt like it went on too long.  Not enough to take away from the enjoyment, but as I mentioned earlier, one or two of the scenes could have been removed without changing the story.

All in all, The Inhabitants is a breath of fresh air amongst the recent wave of horror movies that involve a house with a dark secret. I am eagerly looking forward to what this writing duo can do in the future, because it looks bright. The Rasmussen’s have taken a simple story and given you more than enough to feel engulfed by its horror.  This is an awesome October release, just in time to make it into your Halloween horror marathons.  

 

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