Chambers of Horrors is the Indie Horror of the Atlanta Haunt Scene

by The Horror Czar (Don Sumner)
(Atlanta, GA)

Chambers of Horror Atlanta Official Site

Atlanta Georgia is the home of one of the most well-known haunted attractions in the U.S.A., Netherworld. Being a long-time resident of the South East I remember Netherworld back in the day, before the huge crowds and heavy-handed animatronics. I was reminded of that time by Chambers of Horrors, an Atlanta haunt in its sophomore year.

Chambers of Horrors is promoted as “The Most Extreme R-rated Atlanta Attraction” and certainly lives up to that name. The scene is set in a small white tent where a faux “promotional video” is shown about the company TortureCo, the purveyors of fine pieces of torture equipment and providers of well-equipped death spaces in which to use them. On the video the lovely and bespectacled spokeswoman describes the wonderful tools of the trade and invites us all to satisfy those hidden urges in a comfortable atmosphere. You’ll notice I didn’t say “safe”. It appears that there is one individual associated with TortureCo who is just a little too gleeful in his torturous trysts, the evil “Dr. Splatter”. Splatter is on the loose; shockingly at the very instant the guests begin their tour. Oh the luck.

What follows is scene after scene of dirty, bloody torture. Lots of loud noises and dismembered victims later, you emerge… a bit “dirtier” than you were at the start.

Chambers of Horrors is well done and works hard to earn the “extreme R-rating” they hype. The last time I heard so many four-letter words screamed with such gusto was when my buddy John kicked the television cord out of the wall during the final quarter of a Superbowl party. Aside from the overt noises and bloody folks, though, there are details that really seal the deal. If you are one of those who run their hands along the wall in the dark for some semblance of control, for example, you will be crying like a baby about half way through this haunt. Oh, and are you into water sports? Before you go get that floaty toy let me be clear… that’s not the kind I’m talking about. That’s all I’m going to say about that…

If one were to compare Chambers of Horrors to the A-list Atlanta Haunt Netherworld it would be similar to pitting one of the recent mega-budget studio horror films against a lower-budget Indie film. It seems that if there are huge budgets for effects and visuals then it is less important to be creative in their presentation – the effects will carry the film. Lower budget Indie, however, does not have the luxury so must resort to good old fashioned ingenuity to get the job done. That encapsulates Chambers of Horrors, and it’s a great haunt because of it.

When you visit Chambers of Horrors come ready to be scared and don’t wear clothes that will bring despair if they get wet… there is a bit of water, and some, uh, other stuff that will certainly get on you. Come thirsty too, because they have a bar set up so you can Jager-Bomb your way to bravery. Chambers of Horrors is a good haunt now, and will no doubt evolve year over year and get better and better.