Howard Lovecraft and the Undersea Kingdom

Howard Lovecraft and the Undersea Kingdom is a 2017 animated film released directly to video, based on a graphic novel of the same name and inspired by the work of horror writer H. P. Lovecraft. It serves as the sequel to the 2016 film Howard Lovecraft and the Frozen Kingdom and was itself followed by Howard Lovecraft and the Kingdom of Madness in 2018.

Plot

The story picks up after the events of the Frozen Kingdom, with Howard Lovecraft back at home. A curse strikes his family, forcing him to journey to the Undersea Kingdom to rescue his mother, who has been captured by an old enemy. Along the way, he receives help from Dr. Armitage, his father Winfield, and his best friend Spot.

Production

On January 18, 2017, the voice cast was announced, including Mark Hamill as Dr. Henry Armitage, Christopher Plummer as Dr. Herbert West, Jeffrey Combs as King Abdul, and Doug Bradley as Nyarlathotep. Ron Perlman reprised his role as Shoggoth. Shout! Factory acquired distribution rights for the series across theatrical, digital, broadcast, and home entertainment formats.

The cast also features Kiefer O'Reilly as Howard Lovecraft, Scott McNeil as Dagon and the Govlins, Sean Patrick O'Reilly as Spot, Harmony O'Reilly as Innes, Michelle O'Reilly as Sarah Lovecraft, Phoenix O'Reilly as Twi'i, Summer O'Reilly as Gotha, and Tyler Nicol as Winfield Lovecraft.

The film was released on October 1, 2017, and screened at the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival in Oregon, the FearNYC Film Festival, and the Hot Springs International Horror Film Festival. It came out on DVD and Blu-ray on December 5, 2017, through Shout! Factory as part of a three-feature deal with Arcana Studio.

Critical response

Critical reception was mixed. On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a 40% approval rating, and on IMDb it has a weighted average of 7.5/10 from 392 votes. Critics noted that while the film is fun, adventurous, and makes Lovecraft's mythos accessible to younger audiences, the story becomes muddled with too many plot points crammed into a short runtime. Fans praised the voice talent but criticized the animation quality.

Accolades

The film won Best in the Festival: Sci-Fi at the Hot Springs International Horror Film Festival and Best Director at FearNYC.