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In a Violent Nature -
I love walking through the woods, but thanks to this movie, I'll hesitate to do so from now on. That's a credit to how much this movie terrified me, which I would describe as Friday the 13th served raw. To elaborate, all the sound is ambient and the takes are long, with most of them following the friendly-looking guy on the poster, Johnny, as he cuts paths through the wilderness. Where it really cuts deep, though, is in the kills, which besides being pretty darn brutal will linger in your mind for how cold and remorseless they are. The forest in this movie is big and easy to get lost in, which means Johnny is on the go a lot, so there are a lot of scenes that feature him simply walking through the woods, which some may find boring. I, however, love the tension and atmosphere they build, especially since we're just as uninformed as to where his targets are as he is. Johnny also doesn't talk much - well, not at all - which is also not a liability because it makes the unspoken moments where we learn who he is leave a mark.
Unfortunately, the scenes where there is dialogue do not work as well as the ones without it. Despite being a bit too mean-spirited, the banter amongst the campers is fine, but I did not love most of the exposition. Part of the problem is that the backstory is a tad convoluted, which is a shame considering how elegant everything else comes across. Other than that, this is a horror movie that again will make you never look at a group of trees the same way again, which is a good thing, believe me. Oh, and you'll likely take the old forest ranger adage of "only take pictures and only leave footprints" more seriously.
I love walking through the woods, but thanks to this movie, I'll hesitate to do so from now on. That's a credit to how much this movie terrified me, which I would describe as Friday the 13th served raw. To elaborate, all the sound is ambient and the takes are long, with most of them following the friendly-looking guy on the poster, Johnny, as he cuts paths through the wilderness. Where it really cuts deep, though, is in the kills, which besides being pretty darn brutal will linger in your mind for how cold and remorseless they are. The forest in this movie is big and easy to get lost in, which means Johnny is on the go a lot, so there are a lot of scenes that feature him simply walking through the woods, which some may find boring. I, however, love the tension and atmosphere they build, especially since we're just as uninformed as to where his targets are as he is. Johnny also doesn't talk much - well, not at all - which is also not a liability because it makes the unspoken moments where we learn who he is leave a mark.
Unfortunately, the scenes where there is dialogue do not work as well as the ones without it. Despite being a bit too mean-spirited, the banter amongst the campers is fine, but I did not love most of the exposition. Part of the problem is that the backstory is a tad convoluted, which is a shame considering how elegant everything else comes across. Other than that, this is a horror movie that again will make you never look at a group of trees the same way again, which is a good thing, believe me. Oh, and you'll likely take the old forest ranger adage of "only take pictures and only leave footprints" more seriously.