Movie
Hell House LLC: Lineage
Narrative tropes
You Can't Trust Anyone
highDonald the caretaker is revealed as a long-time conspirator with Tully, hiding in plain sight the entire time. A vast hidden conspiracy — Tully and Donald manipulating Patrick Carmichael, the Abaddon Hotel's true origins, the cult, Vanessa's secret parentage — unfolds as a series of escalating betrayals. Vanessa must question everyone around her as paranoia is repeatedly validated: Bobby is murdered shortly after she meets him, Alicia and Father Flannery are killed, and her presumed-dead twin turns out to be entangled in the conspiracy.
About this trope: Trusted allies, institutions, or authority figures are secretly working against the protagonist. Paranoia is justified because betrayal is real and pervasive.
A Parent's Shadow
highInherited sins literally drive the deaths: Troy Hopewell's drunk driving kills Margaret Carmichael, and decades later his son Bobby is hunted and killed by the same curse. Vanessa's entire arc is re-framed when she learns she is Tully's secret daughter — her PTSD, her visions, and her entanglement with Abaddon all stem from her parentage. The curse follows bloodlines (Troy's companions and their family members each die with a red ball), making a parent's legacy the central engine of the plot.
About this trope: A character must grapple with the legacy of their parents or predecessors — living up to high standards, running from expectations, atoning for inherited sins, or forging their own path.
Revenge Destroys You
mediumPatrick Carmichael vows vengeance after his daughter Margaret is killed, but his grief and obsession are exploited by Tully and Donald — who manipulate him into constructing the cursed Abaddon Hotel and founding a death cult. His revenge quest costs him his identity and moral standing, and the story frames his radicalization as a direct consequence of his inability to let go, making his vengeance the origin point of the film's broader horror.
About this trope: Pursuing vengeance — even when justified — is ultimately self-destructive, hollow, or morally degrading. The avenger is consumed by their quest.
Cultural messages
Science vs. Faith
mediumVanessa's psychiatrist interprets her supernatural visions and PTSD-like symptoms through a rational medical lens — a diagnosis shared by others affected by the same demonic events, which the plot ultimately shows is insufficient. Father Flannery's spiritual framework (the exorcism attempt) is the correct one even though he is killed. The supernatural curse, demonic clown killer, and Vanessa's visions are all validated as real, meaning the scientific/psychiatric explanation is explicitly outrun by spiritual reality.
About this message: Characters face a choice between rational/scientific thinking and spiritual/intuitive belief. The story typically validates faith or emotion over cold logic — the scientist is wrong, the believer is vindicated.
Movies that share these tropes
Full plot (spoilers)
Hell House LLC: Lineage is a non-found-footage supernatural horror film written and directed by Stephen Cognetti, set in the cursed town of Abaddon, New York. The narrative unfolds across multiple timelines. In 1989, the Carmichael family mourns the death of Margaret Carmichael, killed in a car accident caused by an intoxicated truck driver named Troy Hopewell and four passengers. Margaret's father Patrick vows vengeance. Four years later, in 1993, Troy Hopewell is murdered at a carnival by a clown-costumed assailant. In the present day, Vanessa Shepherd — a former television personality who once documented paranormal events at the infamous Abaddon Hotel — now runs a local bar. She suffers from PTSD and disturbing visions stemming from the attack carried out at the hotel by Andrew Tully. Her psychiatrist informs her that others have experienced similar symptoms, particularly following the deaths of three investigators at Carmichael Manor. Bobby Hopewell, son of Troy, works at Vanessa's bar. Shortly after Vanessa meets Bobby, he is murdered by the same demonic clown killer. Vanessa then encounters Alicia Cavalini, a true crime author who had been collaborating with Bobby. Together, they piece together that Troy Hopewell and his four companions were responsible for Margaret's fatal crash, and that over the subsequent decades, those individuals and members of their families have been mysteriously dying — each death accompanied by the appearance of a red ball. Meanwhile, a young bartender named Max independently discovers the same pattern and, overwhelmed by what he uncovers, shoots himself. Vanessa's estranged husband Tom is also placed in danger by the spreading curse. Father David Flannery and Alicia attempt to perform an exorcism at Carmichael Manor, but both are killed by supernatural forces during the effort. Through supernatural visions, Vanessa learns that Carmichael Manor originally belonged to Tully, and that Donald, the manor's caretaker, has long been in league with him. The two conspired to manipulate Patrick Carmichael into constructing the Abaddon Hotel and founding a cult in pursuit of immortality. Donald then reveals to Vanessa that she is one of two children secretly fathered by Tully. Vanessa finally encounters her twin brother Mitchell, who had previously been presumed dead — but who is very much alive and entangled in the conspiracy alongside cult member Freddy Perkins.
Sources: Wikipedia, Culture Crypt review