Portal to Hell – Review

Portal to Hell brings funny dialogue and a quirky horror concept to craft an okay comedy. While this could have used a better script, more budget and even more zaniness, what is presented here works fairly well and entertains through its short runtime, despite its likely constraints.

Dunn (Holland) is a debt collector. He tries to get medical and other debts paid from people that don’t want to talk to him or have money to spare. Honestly, it’s hard to feel sympathetic towards him, even when he gets shit on constantly making calls and trying to make a living of his own as an independent contractor.

One day while in the laundromat, he notices what looks like the title of this movie, emanating from a dryer. This strange otherworldly and orange glow catches his attention, and that of worker Ed (D’Ugo). So, what will this very weird day bring? I could tell you, but that would be wrong.

Portal to Hell has a few veteran actors in Keith David and Richard Kind, and they play their roles very well, especially Kind who has plenty of fun. David has to be a bit more serious, but it’s always good to see him. As far as the rest of the lesser-known cast, they are just fine also. The dialogue is the best part of this film, and most of the jokes are capitalized on with their acting. The script and the characters are solid, but the plot could have gone into even wilder places.

If you expect a low-budget romp through a fun idea, you could probably handle this. It’s a bit silly and definitely could have used more insanity, and funding, but it strangely brings some heart along with its interesting concept and moral quandaries. While I wanted the film to lean further into its core weirdness, the script still has enough to merit a watch, and there really is not much horror as it is primarily comedic.

“Do you want to throw him in… a little bit?”

This is a tougher one to compare, mostly just fun comedy and a touch of horror vibes like some below.