“Hold the Fort” follows Lucas and Jenny, a couple who find themselves in a battle between their Homeowners Association and an onslaught of monsters from Hell.
Early on, writer-director William Bagley makes it evident that he is focused on fun. Rather than wasting time developing the characters, he drops the audience inside of a peculiar situation. It starts with Lucas and Jenny already moved into their new house. It quickly shifts to a Homeowners Association meeting. Within additional minutes, it’s already on to a human-versus-monster showdown. After the campy violence begins, it never really stops.
“Hold the Fort” uses this lack of information to its advantage, contrasting this fantastical story with the real-life realities of HOAs. When people move into a new home, they are immediately given packets of information and redundant rules regarding their property. Not only that, but they’re also required to pay a fee to the Homeowners Association just to live there. The film makes a mockery of this, as the lead characters are expected to know the horrors that await them just from contracts and paperwork.
“That’s why the fees are so high. Gotta pay for bullets and sh-t.”
Despite this, it does go overboard with the humor at times. “Hold the Fort” is full of one-liners and caricatures. With everything taken so unseriously, it’s hard to actually take the threats themselves seriously. Mixing this with the graphic bloodshed doesn’t always land, resulting in tonal imbalances that halt the overall flow.
The fast-paced nature of “Hold the Fort” is both a blessing and a curse. Initially, it provides a consistent shot of adrenaline that propels the story forward. At a certain point, however, viewers will likely be looking for more. Taking place in just a single night, the movie never provides answers about the lore behind this seemingly cursed area. And to be fair, Bagley’s screenplay (based on a story by Scott Hawkins) isn’t concentrated on this. Still, it leaves the film without a larger core — outside of the fact that it’s funny seeing a Homeowners Association fighting monsters.
Instead of forcing in social commentary like the recent “Night Patrol,” the film contains conversations rather than sermons. There are both benefits and downsides to Homeowners Associations, and “Hold the Fort” makes fun of both sides.
There does come an additional problem from all of this. The “protagonist,” Lucas, is unlikable. He not only abandons neighbors on multiple occasions, but also his wife. With each flight rather than fight, it makes him more detestable than the last. This trait proves to be part of his overall character arc, but translates into a negative reaction nonetheless.
Chris Mayers (Lucas) does play the persona well, though. He’s constantly high-energy, remaining loud and sort of obnoxious the entire time. Mayers especially succeeds at bringing the character’s “clueless” personality to the screen. Other notable performances come from Haley Leary (Jenny), Julian Smith (Jerry) and Levi Burdick (Ted). Everyone portrays largely one-note individuals, each diving completely into clichés that fit inside this world.
Battling monsters, the film features a plethora of effects. Some are good, some are bad and many are in between. In intimate moments, “Hold the Fort” nails the creature designs and blood with practical work. When the scope grows into the digital realm, they’re easy to label as “cheesy.” Despite not always remaining the same quality, the effects at least serve their purpose, which is generating unease or creating laughter.
Director of photography Alex Allgood gives the visuals a high-energy aesthetic as well. The camera doesn’t stay still for long in “Hold the Fort.” Especially during the action, he utilizes snappy zoom-ins and quick pans to capture all the movement. Bagley’s editing matches this with sharp comedic timing.
“Hold the Fort” takes a mundane thought — a Homeowners Association — and makes it fun. Turn your brain off and watch the campy carnage unfold.
Rating: 3 out of 5
