My dear readers, though I am firm believer in the importance of family and all that sort of thing, I do find that even the thickets of blood bonds can be diluted by time and distance. Not too long ago, I had occasion to reacquaint myself with my cousin Samuel Hauntedhouse, an incorrigible practical joker whose habit of stuffing unchewed dinner rolls into the sides of his cheeks was the absolute height of hilarity in our youth. But the same jovial impulses that used to captivate me have become a bit irksome in our later years. Some of our more devoted readers may recall the necklace that I recently gave to my sweet Penny Dee. During his latest visit, Samuel devised a jest where every time he laid eyes on the necklace, he pretended to fall into a bizarre state, foaming at the mouth and violently attacking anyone within an arm’s reach. Though his unwavering commitment to this “bit” was impressive, it did result in several difficult scenes with the staff. It is possible that my sense of humor may not have matured enough since our dinner roll days to appreciate his bold new approach to humor but I suspect my lack of amusement is more deeply rooted in the difficulties one finds reuniting with family after an extended absence.

Matt (AJ Bowen) knows a thing or two about difficult family reunions. He and his brother Steve (Scott Poythress) have grown a bit estranged over the years, and Matt’s wife Karen (Susan Burke) suggests that Christmas might be an ideal time for them to reconnect. Matt and Karen decide it best not to advertise this visit ahead of time and instead show up in the dead of night as a sort of holiday surprise. Unfortunately, Steve is not in the “holly jolly” mood they had hoped for and seems quite agitated with their presence. With the help of some light prodding and grain alcohol, Steve reveals the reason for his dearth of Yuletide spirit -- he is preoccupied with thoughts of the devil, an entity who he has successfully imprisoned in his basement.

This claim seems to expedite concerns that Matt and Karen harbor about Steve’s stability, especially when Steve’s allegedly infernal prisoner sounds an awful lot like an ordinary fellow pleading for his release. Steve is well aware that some might not find this to be the sanest of setups and in order to demonstrate the validity of his claims, he has assembled one of those helpful rooms with news clippings pasted on the wall that usually serves to clear things up a bit. But when Matt and Karen are not persuaded by this presentation, Steve decides it best to brandish a firearm and employ a more forceful approach to safeguarding his diabolical captive.

Director Josh Lobo’s I Trapped The Devil tackles a number of troubling themes, weaving together the struggles one encounters when a loved one gets a bit soft in the old onion with a physical force that exists solely to perpetrate the needless suffering of human beings. But while mental illness and supreme evil can be unsettling subjects, at its core, the film addresses a matter more frightening than the two combined -- unannounced holiday guests. Entertaining can be a burdensome task on its own without the added pressure of forced improvisation. And yet for some reason, there are those who treat certain special occasions as an open invitation, expecting their put-upon hosts to whip up some cheer and Charcuterie with no advance notice. The whole notion is positively ghastly. This appalling concept, combined with the aforementioned pairing of madness and Mephistopheles, makes I Trapped the Devil a triple threat of terror.

I Trapped the Devil runs 82 minutes and does not possess a certified rating in the United States.