Common Sense Media Review
By JK Sooja
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Haunted restaurant thriller with violence, gore, language.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
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Where to Watch
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House of Spoils
What's the Story?
In HOUSE OF SPOILS, Chef (Ariana DeBose) is trying to make it as the head chef of a brand-new restaurant that's due to open soon. Upon getting to the new restaurant's location, however, Chef finds that the house is attached to a creepy garden. She also finds out from a local that the place used to be owned by a powerful witch. Will Chef survive the opening of her new restaurant? Will the critics be thrilled by a new kind of cuisine?
Is It Any Good?
Despite Ariana DeBose's strong lead performance, this haute cuisine thriller lacks punch, zest, and seasoning. There are plenty of creepy vibes in the first half of House of Spoils, but it quickly deviates from its somewhat interesting premise. Where the story might go from that point, the film doesn't seem sure. Nevertheless, at the midway point, it's clear the story can clearly lean into the bug horror thing, the psychological thriller thing, or the ghost-haunting thing, but it feels like the film can't decide. Because of this, there's a lack of internal coherence and consistency.
For example, if the end implies that actually, Chef and the town back in the day are and were respectively "wrong" about the witch, then all the "horrific" things in the film's first half don't make any sense. While the reveal about where the witch is now is neat, it still renders a lot of what comes before it confusing, retroactively, which is weird. Also, some of the sequences and events during the film's final act feel forced, unlikely, and at their worst, laughable.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about violence in thrillers. Did any of the violence in House of Spoils surprise you?
What could have made this film feel more realistic?
Are you satisfied with how the movie ends? Why, or why not?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : October 3, 2024
- Cast : Ariana DeBose , Barbie Ferreira , Arian Moayed , Marton Csokas
- Directors : Bridget Savage Cole , Danielle Krudy
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Director(s) , Female Movie Actor(s) , Queer Movie Actor(s) , Black Movie Actor(s) , Latino Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Amazon Studios
- Genre : Thriller
- Topics : Cooking
- Run time : 101 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : language and some violent content
- Last updated : September 18, 2025
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