Joe Dante has more than earned his stripes in the filmmaking world, he doesn't have anything to prove to me. I would also call him the king of family horror, if such a genre exists. The Hole is just creepy enough to not suck to adults but feels like something I should have seen on HBO in 1986.
The story involves two kids moving into a new house with their mother. The brothers make a new friend in the teen hottie next door and, at the same time, discover a hole in their basement that leads to...something. I really think Dante would want me to use that "When you stare into the abyss, the abyss also stares into you" line but that is a bit high-falutin' for a movie that rips of Stephen King's Cat's Eye. Eventually, manifestations of the three kids' fears begin emerging from the Hole and terrorizing them (including a Japan-approved, jerky motioned dead girl and a jester doll where they use a practical effect instead of CGI). The lead kid has the emotional range of a toaster but the other actors do pretty well. Some Joe Dante favorites pop up in small roles, as well.
I don't think this will scare you too terribly but it may be a good horror movie to share with a younger family member this Halloween season (I would say ages 9 and up should have no problems with it).
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