They Found Hell (2015 TV Movie) User Reviews (26)

found it but didn't quite know what to do with it

[A_Different_Drummer · 5/10 · 10 April 2016]

reviewers notes humbly submitted:

1. Traditional narrative tells us any story needs a beginning, a middle and an end. This script disposes of the beginning. By the 3:00 mark you are in the middle. Daring. Ballsy. Cool.

2. "This is like a bad trip man." (dialog). Do people still say that? I know I once said that but I am way old. Haven't young people evolved since then?

3. Speaking of evolution, I prefer the new horror meme to the old one. The old one was that young people went to summer camp and as punishment for being young, healthy (and under-appreciative of those qualities) they were killed one by one. The new meme is is that young people try to tamper with the space-time continuum and also get punished. I like it.

4. Despite such promising ideas, at the end of the day this is still a low-budget film with pretensions of not looking like what it is. Typical of its class, by the 3/4 mark the budget seems to run out and the director relies on closeups in dark rooms. Not to extend the dramatic impact. But because they are cheaper to do.

Not horrible - but pretty damn Cheesy

[Leethal1 · 3/10 · 1 April 2016]

Its is a T.V movie, so perhaps i had a too higher opinion going in, but it is what it is.. Some Good points - Sets were good, premise and story line were very intriguing, some of the costumes and characters were great as well..... unfortunately 'the actors'...who they were i do not know? and weather I should blame them or the script i am not entirely sure. But the Acting was clichéd and cringe worthy to say the least. Had they had better direction and dialogue this may have been something to be enjoyed. However like so many horror movies I have seen lately, there is no sense of realism, no sense of real fear. I would not recommend this.

cliché science fiction horror

[robinthealchemist · 5/10 · 25 December 2015]

i had hoped that they would make it more hellish... the kids who were supposed to be smart and science students, were actually your average football retards. i mean, who walk around hell yelling: hello, hello, is anyone there? or: help! please Help! as if thats gonna happen... also the "demons" were not quite demonic, i mean why wouldn't a hell-spawn play with his prey before brutally devouring it? it lacked torment and ruin as one would expect from hell, i was hoping the entire movie for the people to meet gruesome ends, and was rather disappointed... sure i didn't have too high expectations, but is a bit more carnage too much too ask from hell?

this movie was good enough to escape from Christmas (a hellish experience returning every year, the colors and happiness *ugh...) but comes nowhere near stuff like silent hill.

they should have put a bit more work into the script and text, and it could have been better. but all you get now are sniveling weaklings scared of everything, and you just want them to die quick (but horribly) and get it over with.

Just no...

[squirrellmen · 1/10 · 1 April 2016]

I enjoy cliché over the top movies and I enjoy well written well directed movies. Casting can be hit or miss but with a good script and direction can be hidden well.

Unfortunately the writing isn't quite cliché but uncomfortable. They use historical references without actually giving any real or fun bits from mythology.

I tried very hard to like this movie but the motivations of the characters, the cheap hooks that fail to hook let me cringing for most of the film.

It is a shame because this movie could have been great if there was more planning and time spent working on the nuances that get the view to care about the plot and characters.

Winner of the competition for dumbest characters.

[jeriahswillgdp · 1/10 · 25 April 2021]

Tried to watch this film, the utter stupidity of the characters was too frustrating. You will scream at your tv even if were in a great mood prior to viewing this mental atrocity. Oh and their mythical "hell" is just an abandoned factory with a couple flames here and there. Yes, really.

Solemn tone, hellish sets and effective no-name cast, but too one-dimensional

[Wuchakk · 5/10 · 11 July 2017]

Released to TV for Halloween, 2015, and directed by Nick Lyon, the unimaginatively titled "They Found Hell" concerns several American college students who inadvertently open up a portal to the underworld and find themselves trapped in the damnable dimension, desperately trying to find a way out.

This TV-horror flick has several things in its favor, such as a grave ambiance, well-done infernal sets and a decent cast of no-names who take the material seriously, including three quality females (Mirela Burke, Katy Reece & Kabby Borders). Unfortunately, the hottest one buys the farm prematurely, which I predicted in the first few minutes.

Another problem is that the movie is decidedly one-note from beginning to end. In the first 10 minutes the youths are thrust into the netherworld and the entire story consists of them seeking escape. Thankfully, there are a few creative elements, like Charon and the River Styx, but that doesn't make up for the one-dimensional nature of the proceedings.

Instead of establishing the characters and building suspense, the movie opts for horror right out of the gate, which continues to the climax. This is reminiscent of 2005's "Death Tunnel," but that pic worked (at least in my opinion) because it combined the one-note approach with mesmerizing visual style and kinetic editing work (which, to be fair, some people found needlessly confusing). "They Found Hell" is pedestrian by comparison.

There are also similarities to 2008's "Flu Bird Horror," but it lacks that movie's compelling story and fascinating subtext (I'm not kidding, see my review for details). Still, there's enough good here to give it a watch if you can handle Grade B horror flicks. Best of all, it has Mirela Burke for about 35 minutes and you can't beat what the costuming department dreamed up for her.

The film runs 87 minutes and was shot in Sofia, Bulgaria. The screenplay was written by Neil Elman & Nicole Jones-Dion.

GRADE: C+

Action-filled, with cute actresses, but too cheesy.

[fedor8 · 8 August 2020]

A TV movie from the Sci-Fi channel (or the SyFy channel, whatever the hell they call it), and it shows. While there is a certain amount of money invested in the sets i.e. the movie doesn't look cheap as far as the locations are concerned (the plot moves swiftly from one place to another), the film looks visually cheap: it looks just like a TV movie, or a cheap 90s horror film. A more competent director was needed here; you can't feature hell and expect to get away with run-of-the-mill direction. Hell requires effort.

Most horror films are guilty of dragging out the intro/build-up, but that's one thing TFH can't be blamed for. The action starts from the very beginning and never stops. Sounds good, huh? In theory, yes. I believe the film's visual cheapness is its downfall; if you're going to depict hell - of all places - you'd better get your sheet together otherwise you risk boring your audience with cheese, and that's what happens here. Despite the good premise, despite the highly attractive female cast (especially Katy Reece), despite the constant action, I found myself fidgety.

Another cheese factor is all these teens (or at least some of them) being part of the science team that found a way to other dimensions. That's pretty laughable. But I get it, these movies are aimed at mindless teens...

A few good moments

[Pinouchipop · 4/10 · 26 February 2020]

There were a couple imaginative moments, but the remaining is largely predictable. The soundtrack is horribly irritating, and the girls' screaming - without anything happening but yelling at each other and freaking out, gets tremendously annoying. Since the music does nothing to help, it is only because of one good twist in the middle of the movie that I watched it untill the end. Because of it, it deserves to be labeled "horror movies". But I would still recommend to watch something else if you are looking for some Thrill...

"Hello?"

[jrlovelace · 1/10 · 17 March 2021]

"Oh my God" "Help me!"

Must drink every time you here these words!

Hell Will Take Anybody

[Calaboss · 6/10 · 17 October 2015]

Well, SyFy Channel movies have almost reached the level of special effects that theatrical movies had 20 years ago. Almost. To be honest, I think they are satisfied with the level of visual effects they are getting now, as the quality has not really improved in about 5 years. I'd say this one was on the high side of their scale though.

Oh yes, the movie. We all know the drill here. A bunch of actors you've never heard of before, moan and lurch their way towards the realization that they aren't going to be the next Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie. Chances are, you'll never see any of them again. The movie's concept is actually pretty decent. College students playing around with an experimental matter transporter gizmo accidentally open a hole to Hell. And they don't waste time getting there either. It was only about 5 minutes into this thing and we had our half dozen kids stumbling around in Hell, looking for a way out.

It looks like a PG version of a crossed zombie/slasher flick, with demons doing the slashing. Nothing particularly exciting or new, and you certainly won't be scared or thrilled, but hey, it's SyFy. If you were expecting Oscar quality stuff, you wouldn't be watching a SyFy original film.

We don't actually know if this is Hell, or another dimension the kids opened up. Although, if it's another dimension, it's one MESSED UP dimension. In the end, a college professor pulls out two of them, or maybe they got out on their own. One kid popped out in Russia for no reason I can fathom, (and just what happens to you if you die while in Hell? Where do you go then?). Nothing is explained and little makes sense. Congratulations, you and I just burnt two hours on another ridiculous SyFy movie.

It was watchable at least...

[paul_haakonsen · 5/10 · 20 July 2019]

Initially I had expected a little bit more from the 2015 movie "They Found Hell" from director Nick Lyon.

That being said, don't get me wrong, because "They Found Hell" is not a bad movie, it was actually entertaining enough for what it turned out to be. However, the other side of the movie turned out that the movie was exceptionally generic and predictable.

The storyline in the movie, while it wasn't particularly innovative, was actually fair enough. Sure, it was predictable and generic, but it was also interesting enough in an odd way. Now, you will not see anything in "They Found Hell" that will revolutionize the horror genre, far from it.

Now, the interpretations of Hell was a little bit weird for me. But I guess individually we all have definitions of what Hell would be like. While it was interesting to see some of the interpretations of Hell in the movie, there were other aspects that just didn't really make much sense, was too comical, and also was just downright boring. So there is a lot of diversity here at least.

The acting in "They Found Hell" was actually good, taking into consideration the nature of the movie and the budget of the movie. Sure, it is not Shakespearian performances here, granted, but they get the job done.

As for the special effects. Well, this was a mixed bag of nuts essentially. Some of the special effects - both practical and CGI - were good, while others looked like something taken out of a 1990s computer game. So this movie comes with both ends of the scale.

All in all, "They Found Hell" turned out to be a generic foray into the horror genre for a seasoned horror veteran such as myself.

Fun and exciting Sci-Fi Channel creature feature

[kannibalcorpsegrinder · 9/10 · 20 October 2015]

Conducting an experiment in the desert, a group of college students are thrust into a different dimension that is the literal personification of Hell and must find a way of navigating through the treacherous demons and creatures in order to get back to the surface.

Despite some minor problems, this was quite an enjoyable and thrilling effort with a lot to like. The biggest thing to this one is the fact that it manages to get this one started off and going almost immediately with the opening dimensional rift found even before finishing the credits and then managing to get them down into the demonic levels not far afterward that manages to mean the pace here is truly frenetic and breakneck. That it means a lot of time here exploring this creepy location and encountering the creepy-looking creatures and demons throughout here is what really tends to drive this one, managing to further place a lot of action here as their continuous need to escape from the creatures really drives this one nicely. There's more action in here than expected because of this, with people being forced to run through thick overgrown forests to get away from the creatures lurking within the forest, a series of rooms designed for the dismemberment and disposal of bodies, a gloriously deceptive Gothic church that should've been a grand giveaway about the purposes of the scene, out into the woods to be chased by the dogs and down into the pit with the giant pendulum above them that serves as quite a nasty surprise throughout here, and with all these different locations and encounters throughout here there's just a frantic and never-ending assault of confrontations here. These are dark, chilling and take advantage of literature and history quite nicely by offering plenty of call-backs and nods to how Hell has been played up throughout the ages from the demons gathering bodies into fire pits, holding souls prisoner until the time to collect them and move them to torture pits guarded over by ravenous zombies and other demented ghouls which makes for a thrilling time throughout here. Combined with the strong make-up work on the creatures and the bloody deaths from the numerous kills here, there's a lot to like here without a whole lot of flaws. The only real flaw present in this one is the film's continuous flipping back to the adventures of the student and professor back on campus attempting to fix the ramifications of the experiment, which don't really seem all that vital or contribute much of anything to the film beyond simply taking time away from the group down in Hell by mainly spilling scientific psychobabble that doesn't make any sense. While it's necessary to show how they're attempting to get them back to the surface, the whole kidnapping and holding hostage angle mixed alongside these overly nonsensical scientific discussions aren't the way it should happen. Likewise, the CGI is a little troubling, following the same patterns as many of these Sci-Fi Channel originals but that's to be expected here and doesn't really hurt it the way the other one does.

Rated R: Graphic Violence and Language.

Surprisingly Enjoyable Halloween Fare

[fatfil-414-451797 · 7/10 · 30 October 2015]

Considering this is a SyFy channel movie, I wasn't expecting a great deal. Not to say they haven't made good movies in the past, but within the constraints of made for TV movies. However I was very pleasantly surprised. Basically in the first 10 minutes you find out a group of students have been experimenting with teleportation, and after something goes wrong, they are sent to what is possibly either an alternate dimension, or hell, or both! It is somewhat of a Sci-Fi/Horror crossover (although the only real Sci-Fi component is the teleportation) that doesn't take itself too seriously, and is all the more enjoyable for that. Imagine Supernatural meets Grimm if it was written by Clive Barker (Hellraiser). There are some quite gruesome (for TV) scenes, although the special effects budget doesn't always do them justice. The scenery and settings were atmospheric suitably hellish, and the action doesn't let up throughout. In all this was a thoroughly enjoyable experience!

No on ethinks they belong here

[nogodnomasters · 4/10 · 19 December 2017]

A group of college kids who dropped out of drama class create a transporter and accidentally make a gateway to hell...and get sucked in. For most of the film we watch them battle various creatures which would normally make a great film, but since this was made for US TV it got watered down with boring dialogue, except for the guy who died first.

Guide: No swearing, sex or nudity

Just a television movie. But I've seen worse movies.

[peterp-450-298716 · 5/10 · 29 July 2016]

"Abandon all hope, all ye who enter here."

"They found hell" isn't a cryptic or symbolic movie title. It's just literally where a group of students ended up in this 80's feeling Science Fiction horror. After ten minutes you realize that this isn't a spectacular release for major cinemas. It's a film suitable for the SyFy channel. Not only because it contains some absurdities or because of the somewhat dated special effects, but also due to the poor acting as well. But despite these shortcomings, I still managed to sit out the entire film.

The most striking feature of this movie is the ridiculous short intro. After some craters appear in Russia (no idea how they turned up there and don't expect any explanation) a group of young people hurry back to their lab to resume a kind of experiment with a teleporter. Before they know it, another flaming crater appears again (pitifully bad effects by the way) and almost the entire gang is drawn into this devilish hole. The lack of any explanation about the nature and purpose of this experiment caused the first irritation. Apparently the absence of all this is necessary to get the teenagers as fast as possibly there where they should be. And that's hell.

A devilish intro, so to speak. And that it's hell where they ended up, is emphasized in the dialogue between the group members. The second irritation moment. It was a bit too much for me after hearing these ambiguous statements for the umpteenth time: "What the hell?", "Where the hell are we?", "What the hell happened?" and "It's hot as hell down here". And hearing for the thousandth time someone calling for help (meanwhile they surely realized it wasn't really clever to yell loudly in this place) began to get on my nerves as well. And believe me, I lost count of how many times "Oh my God" was used. Were they hoping for help from a divine, heavenly person? It was obvious they were in hell. This was as clear as daylight after they deciphered a Latin phrase that was written above a wooden gate: "Omens relinquite spes, o vos intrantes". A quote from Dante which was eventually spelled wrong as well.

And yet there were also some positive points in this mediocre movie. I thought the decors were very successful at times. A chaotic and terrifying place where the victims were confronted with their own fears. They ended up in different places, which resulted in different angles of incidence. I got a real "Dungeon Keeper" feeling when watching this. Especially the demonic and repulsive-looking "collector", pulling a rickety cart full of rotting corpses, was magnificent. The ferryman who could provide a possible way out (after paying of course) looked rather spooky. Some scenes were similar to those of other famous movies such as "Evil Dead" and "Saw". Expect also some gore fragments (which were mostly a bit exaggerated).

As befits a true B-movie, the performances were simply mediocre and at times really annoying. Most of them were unknown actors. And the final climax lay in the line of the entire film. Also incomprehensible and unexplained. Maybe it wasn't the best SF/Horror, but I've seen worse. That's for sure.

More reviews here : http://bit.ly/1KIdQMT

Opening The Gates Of Hell

[Tweetienator · 5/10 · 30 December 2019]

They Found Hell got its moments, even if they are rare. We sniff some gore here and there and the teleportation into some domains of hell provides us some delicious moments (the rescue mission including a reopening of a portal with the help of a car battery! Which is in my humble view somekind of proof that I was onto something with my own preeschool experiments - maybe I was very close to get some success with my device for timetravelling - who knows what would have happened if I had just dug a little deeper in that direction in those long gone times...). Well, the kingdom of Satan is not so phantastic and cruel and gory as those in the Hellraiser movies but still this flick got its merits. Production and acting is okay and so is the overall experience watching this movie. Solid, if you want some "horrific" fun and if you are a great devourer of the many horrors and you need an endless stream of supplies.

"Hell-O!"

[gwnightscream · 4/10 · 4 September 2017]

This 2015 horror film features a group of college teens who mess with a scientific device that opens a portal leading to a hellish dimension. One by one, they're haunted and slaughtered by the ghoulish/demonic inhabitants craving their souls and try to survive. This is a weird and creepy flick with some cheesy and gruesome effects. It probably should've been called, "Hello" because the cast yells it at least 20 times. I'd give this a view at least once if you're into horror, fantasy or b-movies.

A promising premise, for the rest negligible.

[johannes2000-1 · 2/10 · 1 July 2021]

Okay, the premise (some science-students mess around with experiments in tele-transportation and unintentionally open a portal to some hell-like other dimension) is okay, but that's about the only positive thing I can say. The set-design tried to evoke all the horrors of hell, but to me it looked as if they could hire some vacant, dilapidated factory and/or municipal building at a bargain price, in which they just added a lot of rubble and debris and then lighted as many fires as possible.

The characters never stop at being in shock ("this can't be true!" - "this must be a nightmare!" - "I can't believe this!" - "tell me that this is just a dream!", - etcetera, etcetera!), they do nothing else but run around from hall to hall, all the time screaming for help (at many times to no-one in particular), and especially the girls are permanently on the brink of hysteria. There's occasionally some gore, but too low-key to save the day. The few monsters are done with reasonable CGI, but the big explosions that caused the enormous crater (aka the portal to hell) looked totally fake. And to conclude, the acting of pretty much all concerned was at best amateurish, only the small part of the teacher was acceptable.

No one thinks they belong here

[nogodnomasters · 4/10 · 10 November 2017]

A group of college kids who dropped out of drama class create a transporter and accidentally make a gateway to hell...and get sucked in. For most of the film we watch them battle various creatures which would normally make a great film, but since this was made for US TV it got watered down with boring dialogue, except for the guy who died first.

Guide: No swearing, sex or nudity

Good only Regular...

[RosanaBotafogo · 7/10 · 24 April 2021]

I loved it, but what were those (de) mega special effects, it must have been a tribute to the 80's, adorable, and the little monsters, the cutest thing, and well made... I liked it because I love trash, normal people won't like it... excellent "The Cave-2017" for the dubious effects, but the context is not so good, nor so well explored and with "shading" of Greek mythology ...

Level bosses?

[lonnielongino · 2/10 · 28 February 2020]

This movie was like watching really bad video game players move through a horror game. Every new room they stumble into had a new monster. It looked like they were trying to beat level bosses in a bad video game. Acting was crappy at best and there really wasn't a point to the movie. But laughably I've seen worse movies. From SYFY alone...lol

Not too bad for a SyFy Halloween movie

[archyros-30909 · 8/10 · 24 October 2015]

Yes, this is a typical low-budget SyFy action horror movie. And yes,the actors are all unknowns. But...I had a good time watching it. Some college students perform an experiment in teleportation, but something goes very wrong. SPOILERS The movie starts with an explosion in Russia, leaving a distinctive crater. Then we move to some college students trying out their "transponder." Immediately they get pulled through a portal into what they believe is Hell. Interestingly, there is a gate with the sign from Dante's Inferno-"Abandon Hope, All Ye Who Enter Here". This ought to tell them that Wherever they are, it is not really Hell. It is a very messed up place, though. This is Hell portrayed as a Halloween Hell House or a Hell dimension from the Buffy/Angel-verse. The only problem is there are all manner of creatures trying to torture or kill them as they struggle to find a way to return to Earth. I have to agree with other reviewers that the cutaways back to the college, with a professor trying to get them back did not add much to it. The other thing that bothered me was that they kept saying things like "Oh My God!" and "Help me!", but not one of them thought to pray, or to call out to God for help. I got tired of them calling for help, but never calling to anyone specific. Who did they think was going to answer? Anyway, I still enjoyed the movie. It was not very good, but it kept moving, and I had to keep watching to see if anyone made it out. If you can see it for free, it might be worth a watch.

Not very worth watching it

[lisabisa-98273 · 4/10 · 15 April 2018]

In my opinion it is no movie that is a must have. The "hooks" weren't very catchy and I did not enjoyed watching it. The idea was good but the movie wasn't.

Astonishingly Good for a low budget horror movie!

[afroizman · 8/10 · 5 November 2018]

I was very, very surprised by the twists and turns in this movie. While we each can imagine what Hell might or might not be like, I think this movie presented a very well thought out version of what Hell could be. Obviously, this movie was produced on a shoestring, but if more money had been available, this might have become the finest horror movie of its time. It is important to stress that this is not some kind of slash and burn film, but rather a movie which uses the environment rather than physical torture to inspire fear or dread.

In another dimension things don't have to make sense!!!

[tonymaccanello · 8/10 · 11 October 2018]

If you're looking for a movie that makes sense, don't bother watching this. If you're looking for a movie thats really creepy don't miss it. So these 6 or 7 college kids are up to no good experimenting with other dimensions besides the one we're in. And guys the girls are cute. They don't waste any time getting to another dimension so things get creepy pretty darn fast. They make it to hell or someplace really like it. I guess that's not a spoiler, it's in the title. there's plenty of creepy beings, you don't want to mess with. There's a lot of running in hell and they keep getting lost. Like I said in my title, when you're in another dimension (or hell) you can have things happen that absolutely make no sense so don't try to figure anything out. I actually fast forwarded about the middle 45 minutes of it and I don't really think I missed anything but Creepy stuff. So the ending finally came and none to soon! I think I enjoyed it but then I could have been taking a nap and probably had been better off. In conclusion, if you like creepy looking things and watching the stars of the movie, along with many extras, outright suffer, then don't miss this movie! Oh, one more thing, if hell is anything like in this movie, I suggest you go straight to the nearest church and start praying and making amends!!!!!!