Dante’s Hotel – TUBI Review (1/5)

DANTE’S HOTEL on TUBI is a new horror movie that has a classic premise many might enjoy along with the familiar cast. I certainly enjoyed seeing AnnaLynne McCord in a starring role again. Unfortunately, that’s the only thing I liked much. Read our full Dante’s Hotel movie review here!

DANTE’S HOTEL is a new TUBI Original horror movie. It’s exactly the kind of horror movie you might expect from this director when you see Ted Raimi is also in the cast. To be fair, the practical effects were awesome and I enjoyed those. Unfortunately, the rest of the movie has a strangely serious tone that just does not match up with the cast or effect choices.

I wouldn’t say I expected much from this TUBI horror movie, but I apparently expected more because I was sadly disappointed by what it had to offer.

Continue reading our Dante’s Hotel movie review below. Find it on TUBI from October 20, 2023.

A mixed bag with name-recognition

We’re in a hotel, where an unknown assailant is killing 12 people every 12 years. In other words, it’s a haunted hotel. However, a New Year’s Eve party is still held there. Fortunately, the simple plot also reveals that the event planner teams up with a mysterious tenant. They have to fight back against that which has cursed the hotel.

Personally, I do enjoy practical effects when the style of the movie matches that choice. Usually, this means some elements of comedy are needed, though the story can also be serious. The Hulu movie Appendage managed to pull off this difficult hybrid.

For Dante’s Hotel, I feel like we’re getting part Evil Dead-style effects but with the sinister and dark mood of The Shining. Actually, that could work in the right hands, but clearly, it does not work here.

AnnaLynne McCord is the star of the movie and does what she can. Judd Nelson plays the mysterious tenant and I am not impressed. At all. Also, there’s Moon Bloodgood is a police detective working against the wishes of her boss. And finally, Ted Raimi is the hotel manager.

On paper, a solid enough cast, but it just didn’t do much for me.

New Year’s Eve comes early… but why?!

With this new TUBI original, the streaming platform decided to start celebrating New Year’s Eve a little bit early. The new horror movie plays out on New Year’s Eve, and I simply cannot understand why they would release this during the Halloween month of October.

I mean, why not wait until December or at least after Halloween? I never understand why anyone chooses to release movies with season-specific stories away from that particular season. I loved that Dark Harvest had been held back even longer than it had to precisely so that the Halloween-themed horror movie could be released during Halloween.

The same should’ve been the case with Dante’s Hotel. I don’t think I would’ve enjoyed it more, but it certainly would not have hurt it.

Now, I just enjoyed seeing AnnaLynne McCord again. I absolutely adored her in Excision from 2012. A movie that won several awards, which it more than deserved. Especially thanks to AnnaLynne McCord. Please, do yourself a favor and check out Excision if you haven’t already. Well, if you can stomach it, that is!

Watch Dante’s Hotel on TUBI now!

The new TUBI Original horror movie was directed by Anthony C. Ferrante. Yes, the very same who gave us the kitsch and crazy Sharknado, but who also made the awful Blind Waters. Very quickly, I’m coming to the realization that I enjoy his movies when he goes wildly over the top. When he doesn’t I really don’t expect much from the movie.

Anthony C. Ferrante also co-wrote the screenplay himself with William C. Martell. I’m not familiar with his previous work, but he does seem to make a lot of genre productions, so that’s good.

Let me be very clear about something; Just because I didn’t enjoy this, I fully believe there’s an audience out there who will. I did not like the strange mix of kitsch and campy elements with too much seriousness. That’s on me. Also, I didn’t enjoy seeing a New Year’s Eve story right before Halloween. That’s on TUBI and their decision to release it now.

If only this movie had utilized humor and campiness more, I think I would’ve actually enjoyed it.

Dante’s Hotel is on TUBI from October 20, 2023.

Details

Director: Anthony C. Ferrante
Writers: Anthony C. Ferrante, William C. Martell
Cast: AnnaLynne McCord, Ted Raimi, Judd Nelson, Moon Bloodgood, Emilio Rivera