The big screen was the first home for slashers. GranddaddiesNorman Bates and Leatherfacepaved the way for the killers to come, from Jason Voorhees in the 1980s, Ghostface in the 1990s, and the cannibals ofWrong Turnin the 2000s. But in the past decade, the small screen has become the second home to slashers who can rack up an impressive kill count with a macabre inventiveness.Scream QueensandScreamwere released in 2015, and the subgenre has only grown since then, becoming a staple withinTV horror shows.
The newest addition to Shudder isHell Motel, a limited series that traps ten strangersin a dementedAgatha Christie-like murder mysteryfilled with true crime obsession and gruesome occult worship. It checks off many boxes to satisfy fans, specifically those who want a ruthless killer.Hell Motelisn’t based on any real-life crime, which might be a relief when you witness how vicious the slasher gets. LikeThe Eaglesoncesang, the guests can check out any time they like, but they can never leave.
What Is the Slasher Horror Series ‘Hell Motel’ About?
Thirty years ago, the Cold River Motel welcomed a young married couple who needed a place to stay as a storm hit. They were brutally killed aspart of an occult ritual, establishing a lurid history. The motel closed down in the ensuing years and has become a historical landmark for true crime fans. In the world of this show, a horror movie series exploited the site’s murders for entertainment. The mysterious Baphomet Killer was never caught, making the case more haunting and fascinating. Thirty years later,the re-opening of the Cold River Motel is about to restart the bloodshedwith new victims when a group of ten true crime-obsessed individuals are invited for a weekend-long event.
Any one of them could be the killer when a storm hits and traps everyone at the motel’s remote spot, far from help. Even without the bad weather, the Cold River Motel is a gloomy, atmospheric setting. The dark paint on the hallway walls is unsettling as it confuses the senses about whether it’s day or night. Open a door to several rooms, and you will find art exhibits that recreate the original massacre. Hotels and motels are no strangers to becoming a place of malice. The lavish maze of the Overlook inThe Shiningand the haunted decadence of the Cortez ruled byLady GagainAHS: Hotelmakes good on hotels being larger, with more rooms for darkness to seep into.
Motels are smaller, and all the more claustrophobic when terror comes for a stay. The Bates Motel inPsychooffers roadside shelter with fatal showers and, over in Cold River, a vacancy sign shouldn’t beckon anyone forward. It should be seen as a warning. CreatorAaron Martinand showrunnerIan Carpentercontinue the brutality of the kills in their previous horror anthology,Slasher, and it willleave you shockedwhen unlucky guests meet their ends in horrific ways.
The Deaths on ‘Hell Motel’ Are Extremely Grotesque
Not every horror movie or TV show needs to be explicitly violent, butthe slasher subgenre demands blood to be spilled with creativity.The best kills can elicit a surprised gasp from the audience or have them squeeze their eyes shut because ofhow disgusting the deaths are. To keep the surprise of who dies inHell Motel, there will be no names given. Where other slashers are more up front with audiences picking up on who is the Final Girl or Final Boy,Hell Motelis trickier. Anyone can go at any time. A sauna with its door locked becomes an oven for the character left inside to be cooked alive. When there is an effort to move the corpse out of the heat, one of the arms slides off the bone like tender meat. Gag-inducing is an understatement.
10 Horror TV Shows That Gave Us Nightmares Right Out the Gate
These shows wasted no time getting under your skin.
Every slasher should have a formidable villainand inHell Motel, the victims will perish at the hands of the Baphomet Killer. They appear like a demonic entity, dressed with a skeletal goat mask and dark robe. One of the best twists in the first episode (this one will be spoiled) is the reveal that there ismore than one killerthat has arrived for the weekend-long celebration at Cold River. Whoever is behind the mask may be responsible for the first massacre or is a copycat. The other guests don’t realize just how high the levels are for them in this danger zone until it’s too late. For sure,Hell Moteldelivers on the gorethat being a slasher requires while also having something to say about the toxic side of true crime fandom.
True Crime Fans Are in for a Rude Awakening in ‘Hell Motel’
The use of true crime in horror as a plot point can take audiences further into the darkness that nonfiction documentaries can’t. It’s a perfect mix too, given murder mysteries and slashers have been a combo going back to the heyday ofthe Italian giallosubgenre in the 1970s. Amateur sleuths or witnesses to murders get themselves trying to solve the crimes and having to escape the clutches of a leather-clad killer. Then there was the meta-commentary on separating movie violence from real lifein 1996’sScreamthat defiantly called out critics of horror movies. The true crime theme inHell Motelcriticizes those who are interested in it for the wrong reasons. The brutal deaths mean there is not a nuanced criticism of an unhealthytrue crimeobsession, but it does get its point across.
Each of the ten guests represents a different interest in the unsolved murders. There’s Adrianna (Genevieve DeGraves), a young woman who is horny for serial killers and wants to have sex with them, but then there is Hemmingway (Eric McCormack), a cruel and snarky cook who prepares a gourmet dinner for guests meant to realistically appear like real human body parts. It may be delicious — but it’s in bad taste. Paige (Paula Brancati) is an actress famous for playing the Final Girl in the movie series based on the Cold River killings. Everyone else is guilty of seeking selfish gain from the motel’s past, with some being more perverse than others.
The guests have exploited a tragedy andmany of them will become part of Cold River’s true crime historyin due time. It may not be for every horror fan, but this new showon Shudderdoesn’t hold back with its kills. They’re ugly and disturbing. With a moody setting, a cast of “who’s next?” and a vicious slasher taking them out,Hell Motelis worth checking in to for a cold-blooded summer binge.
Hell Motel
