What made the short film so effective—the universality of a concept that reaches back to our primitive fears of the dark—Muldowney trades for a baggy foray into paranormal activity bookended by two strong short films.

“The Cellar” really works best as a metaphor about parents who can only watch from a distance as their children get consumed by the adult world’s savage cynicism.

The most immediate problem with The Cellar is that everybody but Cuthbert seems to have made this movie on autopilot.

If you are easily scared and want to dip your toes into the horror genre, The Cellar is probably a good place to start. If you are somewhat of an expert at watching horror-based IPs, maybe give this a pass and seek out better films.