In an effort/promise to promote female directors, writers, and actors of color Welcome to Blumhouse in partnership with Amazon has released 4 films with a variety of melanin at every corner or stories with female leads. I thank them and applaud them for their effort. I will never take that away.
Now let’s get to a review of one of their releases
Premise: In the barrio of Oak Springs live a strong and stubborn group of elderly friends who refuse to be gentrified. Their leader, Lupita (Adrianna Barraza), keeps them together as a community and family. However, their beloved bingo hall is about to be sold to a much more powerful force than money itself.
What I Liked: It’s hard to tell is Bingo Hell was intended to go for Horror Comedy, but I laughed at some places. It seemed so absurd to cigar-smoking foul mouthed Abuelita and the characters that surround her. If that was the intent, they succeeded. To me, there was a good balance of fear and comedy. It worked.
The death scenes and the level of creativity behind them reminded me so much of final destination. You knew something else was amidst and just wanted to find out what would do our victims in.
High Priase to Barraza for holding down this film. She laughed. She cried. She screamed. She got bloody revenge. She a scream queen that smells of bengay. Second kudo goes to her co-star L. Scott Caldwell.
What I Didn’t Like: If it weren’t going for comedy … oops. They should’ve leaned into it, because it’s hard to tell what Bingo or the Bingo Hall is a metaphor for in this film. Is it about addiction and gambling? Gentrification and the destruction of the barrio? Maybe its about ageism and respecting our elders? Or the power to win at all costs? Maybe it’s all of it. Without a central theme, it’s hard to tell what our sinister force is really after.
Verdict: Bingo Hell is slightly stronger than Blumhouse’s Madres but it still can illicit a yawn.