From the creator of HELL HOUSE LLC, writer-director Stephen Cognetti's haunted house movie 825 FOREST ROAD began streaming on Shudder on April 4th, 2025 as part of the streamers Halfway to Halloween celebration.
After a family tragedy, Chuck Wilson hopes to start a new life in Ashland Falls with his wife Maria and little sister Isabelle, but he quickly discovers that the town has a dark secret.The ghost of Helen Foster has terrorized residents since her own suicide back in the '40s.
Finding Helen’s old home is key to ending the hauntings, but the address they have doesn't match any of the town's existing streets. When Chuck realizes his family might be in danger of Helen’s wrath, he takes it upon himself to locate 825 Forest Road before it’s too late.
Written and directed by Stephen Cognetti (HELL HOUSE LLC films), and starring Elizabeth Vermilyea, Joe Falcone, Kathryn Miller, Lorenzo Beronilla, Darin F. Earl II, and Leyah Rose.
“Stephen’s Hell House LCC franchise been a cult favorite for Shudder viewers and we’re excited to welcome him back home,” said Shudder’s head of programming Sam Zimmerman,. “825 Forest Road is a twist on a haunted house tale that will stay with you long after the credits roll.”
Trailer:Stephen Cognetti Interview on 825 FOREST ROAD, HELL HOUSE Movies, and Halloween:
Interview with Joe Falcone (Chuck) from Stephen Cognetti’s “825 Forest Road” (2025):
Jack-O's Review: "The creepy mannequin scene put a big smile on my face and Helen Foster looks creepy AF also. The ending is a bit weak but the more I thought about it, it is a fitting and shocking ending. Nothing Halloween related but there are a couple shots of trees/fall leaves and one character mentions it's the fall season." ★★★ = Good @trickhorrortreater
More Reviews:
"In practice, the film is mundane, repetitive, and full of the same beats...drawing its suspense simply by flooding the film with redundancies rather than committing to engaging plotting and tension-building...Most Glaringly, 825 Forest Road Is An Irresponsible Portrayal Of Mental Illness...Its technical and acting issues aside, the film's biggest problem is that the theme it is trying to address — mental illness and suicide epidemics — is the thing it ends up doing the greatest disservice to...the film really struggles to avoid making a demonized monster out of mental illness, portraying sufferers as violent...In fact, the whole feature tends towards making light of themes of suicide...Ultimately, I found this thematic treatment to be incredibly irresponsible, effectively ruining 825 Forest Road." 3/10 ScreenRant.com
"825 Forest Road comes at the tail end of a trend in the genre that people have called Traumacore or Griefcore, wherein writers essentially use real-life issues like suicide and other avenues to trauma to terrorize their characters. It’s one of the most egregious examples of how this trend fails, even opening with a C.S. Lewis quote: “No one ever told me that grief felt so much like fear.” There are so many variations on “stop blaming yourself for what happened to mom” that it almost approaches parody of the Griefcore genre. The shallow script might be forgivable if Cognetti produced some legitimate scares, but it feels like the found-footage genre suited his visual sensibilities more. There’s a bit of J-horror influence in 825 Forest Road—so many films that followed in the footsteps of Ringu and Ju-On were built on trauma manifesting dark-haired figures intent on vengeance—that made me want to revisit my 2000s obsession with films that truly terrified and fueled my love for horror. When a movie that’s supposed to be getting under your skin only has you thinking of better ones, it’s time to move on." ★ RogerEbert.com
"Stephen Cognetti’s 825 Forest Road took me on an absolutely insane ride. I don’t know what I was expecting, but what I got was the revival of all those old haunted house movies that made you shiver to your bones...825 Forest Road is every legendary ghost story rolled into one...Just heed my warning from the beginning, this film is going to stick with you long after the credits roll...There is an instant attraction to the gloomy setting and the story only darkens the storm clouds. This is not a film you want to miss. I don’t say this often, but I enjoyed every single detail." PopHorror.com
"Sadly, I couldn't find even one piece of this film that really shines. The acting is serviceable but still challenging; the script is rough; and the storyline often discards characters and plot points after they are no longer useful...In addition to lacking cohesion, 825 Forest Road is also absent any ambiance. The film has none of the atmosphere or excitement that we see in the Hell House LLC films. Many of the scares fell flat for me. The mysterious entity at the core of the town’s haunting situation just sort of shows up in the frame without any buildup, making the specter feel haphazard and incidental...I think Cognetti had some difficulty breaking out of the found footage sub-genre. He’s a talented filmmaker, and I still have faith in him. However, 825 Forest Road misses the mark." ★★ DreadCentral.com
"Ashley’s character does wonders for the film, but unfortunately, many of those in 825 Forest Road seem to have issues relating throughout. Characters are most potent when their stories can keep the audience intrigued. With that in mind, the main cast of 825 Forest Road are all decent actors/actresses… but something seems to be missing...Overall, 825 Forest Road moves incredibly fast... In a sense, it feels a bit too rushed...In the end, minus the pace and character disconnect, 825 Forest Road’s story is good, the jump scares are on point, and the ending is a shock. That is why Cryptic Rock is 4 out of 5 stars." ★★★★ CrypticRock.com
"...while 825 FOREST ROAD does have an abundance of jumps, scares, and startling moments, it just doesn’t justify this type of storytelling as much of the film is simply seeing the same scene from a different perspective...I jumped a time or two from some of 825 FOREST ROAD’s jump scares. Not only are they well timed, but once you see the monster leaping from around the corner or in the background, they are damn scary looking as well. Cognetti also has a thing about mannequins coming to life...These are some of the most unnerving scares of the movie...So if you’re looking for a parade of one jump scare after another, this is the ghost movie for you. Unfortunately, I feel the story itself is padded with boring scenes and switches perspectives for no real reason at all...825 FOREST ROAD was a noble effort by Cognetti..." MLMillerWrites.com
"I didn't love all the Hell House LLC movies equally, but when does that ever happen anyway?! I always appreciated the focus on building suspense and horror without the overt use of special effects. Instead, it’s things moving in the background or after you turn your back for a split second. This is exactly what works so well for this new horror movie. I mean, this is the stuff of nightmares. The kind that you can’t wake up from but desperately want to escape. Well, except when it’s a movie, and you want to see how it all ends. The more accurate rating for 825 Forest Road is closer to 3½ out of 5...the main reason we’re ending on 3 instead of 4 is the use of CGI. It’s not necessary. For me, it even takes away from the intense and extremely efficient horror that works so well." ★★★½ HeavenOfHorror.com
YouTube Reviews:
![825 Forest Road - A Creepy Twist on Haunted House Movies [Review]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/un_9HOBVBFk/hqdefault.jpg)
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