Home Sweet Hell - Who Do I Root For?

'Home Sweet Hell' is the epitome of a film that will never be watched by the mainstream.  In fact, I'm surprised in these days of the dollar, this film ever got made in the first place.  That's not because it's bad, it's just because it's so 'non mainstream' that I'm surprised anyone ever thought it would make a profit.  However, I'm glad it was made regardless of how much it earned when it (no doubt!) went straight to DVD (or Netflix - wherever!). 

The reason I feel that it would never be considered 'mainstream' is that the central characters are fundamentally unlikable.  We're introduced to a professional couple (Patrick Wilson and Katherine Heigl) - he is a weak-willed, spineless excuse of a man who is desperate to have an affair with anything in a skirt.  She is a controlling, cold-hearted harpy of a woman.  And, as I mentioned, when he finally gets 'lucky' enough to have an affair with an attractive employee, you know it's never going to end well.  Let's just say that what follows is a twisted tale of blackmail, murder and double-crossing. 

Now, those are traits you may expect from the film's villains (of which there are also the 'traditional' type who come in the form of a pair of meth-heads).  However, the fact that those we're supposed to root for, i.e. Wilson and Heigl, also display those - ahem - 'admirable little traits, mean these are hardly your regular 'heroes.' Some may claim that they could be called 'anti-heroes,' however they do little to earn this label, as they're hardly fighting the forces of darkness for the good of mankind, merely to save their own skins (and reputations!).  I know Wilson comes across as slightly more sympathetic, as he really does find himself victimised by everyone and you can sort of see why he had an affair when you catch a glimpse of his homelife.  James Belushi is a nice guy in the story, but he’s just an additional character who we never really get to know.

Now, please don't think I'm coming across as 'harsh' on this film - I actually quite liked it!  In these days of selfless heroes (many of which in costumes swinging through cities and fighting hordes of alien bad-guys!) I quite enjoyed watching a pair of real nasty people being pitted against those equally distasteful - it made a pleasant change not to care who wins, only enjoying seeing as many people fail as possible.  Yes, they say that you need to 'relate' to characters in order to understand their plight and therefore invest in their journey.  I'm pleased to say I don't really relate to any of them and I still enjoyed the - darkly disturbing and sometimes comic- ride.  If you're in the mood for something distinctly UNheroic and dark, then this one should kill an hour and a half of your time.

7/10 if I woke up on Groundhog Day and had to watch this again, I could live with that