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Hell House. 2001. By George Ratliff. 85 min. Video and DVD format, color. (Cantina Pictures Inc./Mixed Greens Media.)
Halloween has long been a favorite holiday for many folklorists, offering ample fieldwork opportunities for those interested in trick-or-treating, pranks, festive events, costuming, and haunted houses. The traditional haunted house now has competition in the form of new evangelical Christian "Hell Houses" that have emerged at churches throughout the United States. Hell houses parody, mock, and seek to rise far above (think heaven) the usual scary fare offered at conventional haunted houses.
Director George Ratliff (whose 1995 documentary Plutonium Circus explores the hometown of an atomic bomb factory) has created a compelling documentary about the Hell House at Trinity Church of Cedar Hill, Texas. This is the same church that received media attention because of a previous Hell House that had a Columbine massacre room display. Hell House planners are proud of that scene, believing that it was relevant in educating youth and because it garnered interest in their production. Ratliff gains access to the planning of Hell House 10, wisely choosing to focus predominantly on the preparations for the Hell House rather than only on the event itself. This enables the audience to understand who is involved, why, and how the event is orchestrated.
The film presents creators and participants in the Hell House, explaining that the objective behind their production is to "reach the lost." The theme for the year is "The Walking Dead"-or those who are living without Jesus Christ. The planners decide to create scenes for the show regarding suicide, abortion, drugs, and drinking. Although this sounds frightening, what really sends tingles up the spine are the declarations of the group leader, who, in a chilling segment, explains that fear is a part of the ministry and that "a part of salvation is being afraid of going to hell."
The film shows in sensitive detail the young people who audition for the various scenes in Hell House. Many of these youth come from Trinity Christian School where everything, including history,...