HOUSE ON EDEN -- A Found-Footage Fumble That Barely Qualifies as Film

Review by Jonathan Berk

House on Eden will inherently draw comparisons to The Blair Witch Project (1999), as every found-footage horror film since that seminal classic does. However, in this case, a multitude of similarities warrant the comparison beyond just the stylistic presentation. Where this could have been a strength, it only serves to highlight every aspect where House on Eden falls short — not just when compared to the 1999 film, but in its very qualification as a movie.

Playing fictionalized versions of their real-life personas, Kris Collins, Celina Myers, and Jason-Christopher Mayer operate as paranormal investigators… or perhaps just content creators. The trio finds themselves rerouted to an abandoned house deep in the woods on Eden Street. What follows is a collection of random moments, none of which feel fully fleshed out, and often only seem loosely connected to other elements of the story.

While there's no strict definition for what constitutes a "movie", there are some general ideas that come to mind when the word is said. Of course, there are extremes of the form from avant-garde horror like Skinamarink (2022), with its random imagery of elements of the house in the film, to the other end of the spectrum with the meticulously crafted films of Stanley Kubrick, and everything else in-between. Despite this broad definition of what a movie can be, House on Eden's presentation makes one question the very premise. Did Collins make a movie or simply assemble random clips into something that slightly resembles one. 

The intention here seems to be a coherent story, but it possesses the erratic energy of a rookie improv group on stage. Whether it's the repetitive dialogue, the bad jokes, the uninspired "horror" ideas, or the flimsy quest, nothing about this film feels completely thought out. It’s cliché to talk about throwing spaghetti at the wall to see what sticks, but the "writing" here feels more like a wildly aggressive teenager flinging pasta around a room, genuinely surprised to find that some of it stuck. I've seen many of Collins’s social media videos, and much of her short-form content is genuinely funny. There's even a stronger sense of storytelling in those brief clips than in her directorial film debut. It's tough to know a writer's true intentions, and perhaps this was exactly what she aimed for. However, its piecemeal approach leaves the audience scratching their heads, wondering what exactly is going on.

If only the story and characters were the film's sole shortcomings, perhaps it could be salvaged. Unfortunately, the jokes fall flat, and the "horror" isn't scary. There are a few moments that land, but most of it feels empty. Then there are the bothersome stylistic choices with the camerawork, which, despite being tied to the story, quickly become annoying.

The Blair Witch Project caught flak for its shaky camera, but a rewatch reveals the intentionality behind those moments. Here, it’s as if these characters have never held a camera before, right from the outset. It's already a challenge for found-footage films to justify why we, the audience, are privy to the footage. It becomes even more frustrating when that footage is so incredibly terrible. Adding to the absurdity, it's 2025, and the camera technology available to these characters makes the poor quality even more ridiculous. This genre typically thrives on a sense of authenticity, but the movie quickly loses any semblance of it.

While not all found-footage films work, I've certainly enjoyed quite a few of them, which is why I reached out to see House on Eden. I was even more optimistic seeing the talent involved, having fond memories of Kris Collins’s TikTok videos with her "little-handed" character. It brings me no joy to write such a harsh review, but as someone who watches a lot of movies, I found very little to enjoy about this one.

House on Eden will be in theaters on July 25. 

Rating: 1/5

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