Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘The Funeral Home’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for the motion picture, ‘The Funeral Home’.

Of the many scary stories out there, the ghost story is perhaps the most refined and the most predictable of them all. For in essence, this particular horror sub-genre tends to follow some standard plot threads. The kind where someone innocent manages to invite a spirit into their home or into their body and has to figure out how to purge it before it consumes them. Or the story will revolve around a family that moves into a new home and comes to learn that it is occupied by a powerful spirit. One that either requires their help to move into the great beyond… or it is an outright threat to their physical and mental well-being. Which motivates the family to figure out how to purge the spirit by way of a medium or more natural means, so that this evil can leave their lives and they can maintain a sense of safety.
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Which of course, they eventually succeed at, which gives the audience the happy ending they so crave. But while it is nice to know that you’re going to enjoy something predictable and safe and entertaining, when you settle in watch one of these movies or shows, what’s frustrating about ghost stories is that they rarely push the envelope or work to genuinely terrify or unsettle their audience and that’s unfortunate for certain. For this sub-genre could accomplish wonders if it simply dared to be bold on a more consistent basis. But thankfully, once in a while, a filmmaker comes along that understands the true potential of the ghost story and works hard to create a story that genuinely terrifies the viewer and recently, this reviewer had the opportunity to enjoy a ghost story that dares to explore the unrestrained power of the spirit world in The Funeral Home.

Now in this particular tale, we are introduced to a broken family that consists of three members: Bernardo, Estela and Irina. And they operate and live inside a funeral home that once belonged to Bernardo’s father and what makes them so broken and lost in life, goes beyond the fact that this funeral home is run down and falling to pieces. No, instead, what truly has them struggling is the sheer fact that they live together out of convenience, and care not for one another in the slightest and also because… their funeral home is outright haunted. A fact that they are aware of and live with, since they firmly believe that spirits are a natural thing to encounter in a place where death rules the day. But constant appearances from the spirits leaves this family rattled on a consistent basis, and to complicate matters further, the ghosts seem to be getting violent. Which motivates the family to explore what’s going on with the spirits in this place and what they will uncover in their investigation will change their lives forever, in the worst way imaginable.

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So, the first real element of note when it comes to this motion picture, is the sheer fact that it does a wonderful job of shaking up one of the biggest tropes of the ghost genre. In that, rather than have this story be a long, drawn out journey of discovery, where the family works hard to figure out the origin of the spirits that reside within this house and why they’ve come to visit the family… they already know they are there and have zero problem with the knowledge that there is life after death. In fact, at times they more or less view these visitors from beyond as nothing more than unsettling roommates that poke about where they shouldn’t. And their nonchalant approach to the spirit world, combined with their confusion as to why they’re suddenly becoming violent, absolutely sucks the viewer into the story by way of its originality and the mystery it presents and well, that’s when this particular tale takes quite the powerful turn.
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Because once we come to learn exactly what’s happening here, which we won’t spoil in this review, things become quite violent and potentially deadly and that’s when this motion picture shines. Because just like that, the scares begin to kick into overdrive and nothing about this story feels safe and that too is about as brilliant and as original as it gets. For it makes this story a true rollercoaster, one where danger is everywhere and the chances of everyone making it out alive are greatly reduced and well, you simply don’t see that in ghost stories anymore. Because they really are eager to offer up happy endings and outright peace with the spirit world. But here, what lurks beyond is simply out for blood and will stop at nothing to satiate its blood lust and leads to a supremely intense finale, one where you are definitely on the edge of your seat as you wait to see if anyone is going to survive the onslaught of evil that has been brought down upon this house. 

But what’s equally as impressive, is that the story doesn’t just save the best moments for its finale. No instead, this particular story is a tense affair from the beginning. For it wastes zero time in making it known that spirits roam this place and are eager to interact with the family and that twist and every other element we’ve discussed, make this movie a true delight through and through. For it really is a refreshing entry in a tired genre. Since it keeps you guessing from beginning to end and outright shocks you with its savage presentation of what the spirit world is capable of and well, if you’re looking for something new and exciting from a genre that tends to love formula over anything else, then give this movie a look. Because this really is a special horror film, one that will stay with you long after the credits have faded to black, courtesy of a bleak and original story.   

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