Monster Portal is a 2021 British horror film about a cult that is about to awaken H.P. Lovecraft‘s most feared creature… Cthulhu! Also known as H. P. Lovecraft’s Monster Portal and formerly known as The Offering and Paranormal Cemetery.
Written and directed by Matthew B.C. (Eyewitness; Blood in the Water; Exorcist Vengeance; Medusa) from a story co-written by editor Scott Jeffrey [aka Scott Chambers] and Mario von Czapiewski.
Co-produced by Scott Jeffrey (Spider in the Attic; The Mutation; Bats; Bad Nun: Deadly Vows; Cupid; ClownDoll) and Rhys Waterfield (Dinosaur Hotel; Dragon Fury).
Cinematography by Jack Peter Mundy (Prototype; Easter Bunny Massacre; Monsters of War; The Legend of Jack and Jill; Amityville Scarecrow).
The Jagged Edge Productions movie stars:
Sian Altman – Curse of Jack Frost; Alien Abduction; Crocodile Vengeance; The Curse of Humpty Dumpty
Louis James – Help; A Night in 97
Sarah Alexandra Marks – Witch 2022; Help; Exorcist Vengeance; Spider in the Attic; Easter Killing
Judy Tcherniak – The Surgeon
George Nettleton – Blood Myth
Richard Harfst –The Ghosts of Borley Rectory; Rise of the Mummy; The Candy Witch
Special makeup effects were provided by Chelsea Murphy.
Our review:
Writer-director Matthew B.C. continues the promise he showed with his debut feature Medusa and to-a-lesser-extent Exorcist Vengeance with this low-budget take on Lovecraftian horror.
The Scott Jeffrey-produced movie contains familiar themes such as grieving over a lost one and relationship issues leading to a breakup that is oft-used in his productions but thankfully here they don’t overwhelm the horror aspects. And, unlike Jeffrey’s many other films, there is only a very minor amount of filler in what is already a short 77-minute movie.
Even as far back as 1969’s The Dunwich Horror the issue of how to present Lovecraft’s other-worldly monsters has taxed filmmakers but Monster Portal gets by on some acceptably cheap CGI and by setting key scenes at night so the perils of the dodgy daylight dinosaurs seen in other Scott Jeffrey outings aren’t much of an issue.
Monster Portal is a somewhat decent attempt to tackle Lovecraft on a decidedly crippling budget and yet, for the most part, it kinda works. The cast is all decent, especially lead Sian Altman and Judy Tcherniak who plays the cantankerous housekeeper.
Meanwhile, Mike Ellaway delivers an effective orchestral moody score that compliments the proceedings well (he also scored Jurassic Valley; Exorcist Vengeance; The Curse of Humpty Dumpty and Dinosaur Hotel).
Adrian J Smith, MOVIES & MANIA
Other reviews:
“Gets bonus points for at least having the ambition to tackle the bigger aspects of Lovecraft lore, but 98% of the film is an outright stuffy bore, filled with mannequins with no personality as our heroes and endless moments of simply expositioning us into oblivion. The scant instances of the monsters were at least decent for the budget.” ★½ Dustin Baker
“The film’s low budget is obvious in nearly every frame but the monsters themselves are actually pretty impressive and director Matthew B.C. does a good job creating a properly ominous atmosphere […] The acting is a bit inconsistent but, for the most part, Sian Altman and Sarah Alexandra Marks are sympathetic in the lead roles and Judy Tcherniak goes so over-the-top as the housekeeper that she’s actually a lot of fun to watch.” Horror Critic
“There is never anything that produces an eerie atmosphere or causes you to jump. In fact, nothing much happens. The scares are fairly predictable and consist of a fairly ordinary assemblage of clichés from the haunted house genre – no more, no less – before the appearance of a reasonably impressive low-budget Lovecraftian entity at the end.” ★½ Moria
“Being a Scott Jeffrey film H.P. Lovecraft’s Monster Portal didn’t have the kind of budget that would let us see much in the way of giant unspeakable abominations. But it does manage to work in more creature footage than I expected and with some surprisingly good CGI too. The scenes are mostly short, but they are scattered through the film rather than just a bit at the beginning and end.” Voices from the Balcony
Filming locations:
Pekes Manor House, Chiddingly, Hailsham, East Sussex, England (also used for Beneath the Surface and Spider in the Attic)
Technical details:
1 hour 17 minutes
More British movies
More H.P. Lovecraft movies
Trailer:
Free to watch online:
