‘Play House’ Twists Children’s Entertainment Into a Nightmare [FANTASTIC FEST REVIEW]

Old houses tend to hide a lot of secrets, but usually those secrets aren’t ones that you need to be worried about. In Play House, those secrets exist in a plastic bag full of old VHS tapes, each of which contains a disturbing episode of an unreleased children’s show. With elements of Backrooms and a hint of the popular online Candle Cove creepypasta, Play House reminds viewers that sometimes, some videos are best left unwatched.

Elliot (Will Harrison) purchases a new house after going through a breakup with his girlfriend (Jessica Sula). The house is an attempt to prove to her that he can be responsible. As he is looking through the house he discovers a hidden bag of videocassettes featuring an unaired kids show starring Mr. Morton (James Urbaniak). Alongside Mr. Morton is a rotating crew of puppets, all of which seem upset and frightened to be there.

Elliot recruits his best friend and ex (Jordan Gonzalez) to help him investigate the show. As they watch the episodes, things quickly devolve from creepy to downright unsettling. Each episode gets darker, and Mr. Morton slowly begins to lose his control, berating the puppets onscreen and breaking the fourth wall.

Play House is like twisted versions of Mister Rogers and Sesame Street. When Elliot plays the first episode it is already clear that there is something very off about the show. He asks his friend if he had ever heard of it, which his friend denies. The journey through the episodes slowly begins to break down, especially when a stranger appears at Elliot’s door with a strange request.

Play House Combines Analog Horror With Psychological Horror

Play House owes its origins to Fantastic Fest: last year filmmaker Nicolas Curcio participated in Fantastic Pitches, earning $100,000 to make the movie. Having it premiere at the festival seems like the most logical choice. Written by Curcio and his wife, Kirby Gladstein, the focus was on the relationship between the three characters with the horror propping it up.

Even so, that does not detract from how unsettling this film can become. For once, it’s not about the puppets, even though their designs are terrifying in their own ways. The frightened children who are operating and voicing the puppets are where the viewer’s attention lies, especially as each episode begins to fracture, exposing Mr. Morton’s true character. He’s not a Mister Rogers type at all, no matter how hard he tries.

The film is not quite a found footage film, but the elements that it has with the video tapes is just enough to satisfy fans of that genre. It would be easy to ask why they’d watch mysterious video tapes, but honestly, who wouldn’t? However, Elliot eventually comes to fixate on the tapes so much that it threatens his own life.

Another element that works is the choice for the tapes to be played onscreen like the viewers are watching it with the characters. That disconnect makes them that much more eerie and effective. Additionally, Urbaniak’s turn as Mr. Morton is a career best — the icy calm he injects into this character is nothing short of chilling.

If you’re expecting jump scares, then Play House is not the film for you. But if you’re looking for a psychological horror and a slow mental unraveling, then look no further. The real horror, it reminds viewers, is in the people around us. You never know what is going on inside others’ houses.

Credit also needs to be given to Jackie Smook, the puppet designer. For each puppet, as brightly-colored as they are there are also things that are just slightly off — like bloodshot eyes or uneven, broken teeth. Seated on either side of Mr. Morton for each episode they serve as reminders of childhood fears actualized, an inescapable reality of those forced to operate them.

The film takes the time to set up the final act, and the payoff is worth it. Play House will make you look twice at children’s puppets from now on.