When the laundromat opens a gate to the underworld, and you still somehow doze off.
Some movies try to hide their weirdness. Portal to Hell proudly tapes it to the front window of a laundromat and dares you to ask about it.
We went in expecting mid-tier camp, neon lighting, and some literal hellfire. We got... well, all of that. But also: a surprisingly slow midsection, a demon with a deal to make, and one of us fighting the urge to take a nap between blood sacrifices.
📹 The Premise: Three Souls for the Spin Cycle
Set entirely in a laundromat, Portal to Hell begins with a man just trying to do his laundry. Until, of course, a demonic entity crawls out of one of the machines and offers him a deal: deliver three souls, and the portal will close.
Spoiler: he says no.
Until he doesn’t.
Add in a crush on the laundromat clerk, a suspiciously well-dressed demon, and some moral compromise, and you've got the recipe for a light satanic negotiation drama… with Tide Pods.
🎥 The Format: Horror-Comedy in Neon Drag
This film looks fantastic.
The production design is soaked in red, blue, and yellow neon — giving it a late-night music video energy that’s completely at odds with how slow the second act moves.
The first ten minutes? Hooked.
The last ten? Solid.
The middle? Might’ve needed a coffee.
It's hard to tell if the movie wants to go full camp or keep things grounded. It flirts with both, which means the tone starts strong but gets muddy. Still, visually? Gorgeous. Easily one of the best-looking films we saw at CUFF.
✅ What Makes It Work
• The concept is clever. Laundry as a gateway to hell? Why not.
• The first act is fun. Snappy dialogue, absurd setup, great world-building.
• It looks amazing. Seriously — the lighting alone deserves a separate credit.
⚠️ What Doesn’t Land
• The middle sags. The pacing just evaporates in the second act.
• It needed to pick a lane. Camp or serious? It tries to straddle both and stumbles.
• Almost lost Cade to napland. That’s never a good sign.
💸 Should It Have a Bigger Budget?
Not really. It actually looks way more expensive than it probably was. A bigger budget might've overcomplicated the charm. What it really needed was a tighter edit and a better comedic rhythm to carry the energy all the way through.
🎯 The Verdict
Portal to Hell is the kind of film you want to love. The premise is fun, the setting is unique, and the production is polished. But it never quite decides what it wants to be. It needed to either lean harder into the comedy or crank up the horror.
Still, it earns points for being different — and we’ll never look at laundromats the same way again.
Cade: 5/10 — “Good concept. Good look. Lost me a little in the middle.”
Kit: 4.5/10 — “Started strong, ended okay, sagged in the middle. Like a demon in slouchy jeans.”
📺 Where to Watch
Festival screenings or indie horror channels — this one feels built for late-night cult followings. Keep an eye out if you like your horror washed in neon and folded with moral ambiguity.
🍿 Pair This Movie With...
• Snack: Microwave popcorn with too much butter
• Drink: Vending machine soda with mysterious fizz
• Activity: Laundry. (But maybe don’t reach into the dryer too deep.)
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