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Day 186: November 2nd, 2010
Hatchet
Old School American Horror
Still riding the horror train here, I decided to check this one out because I've heard good things about it. I read on the cover, "It's not a sequel, a remake, or based on a Japanese one. I immediately smiled and grabbed it. Beneath the axe that was plastered on the poster it read Old School American Horror. I believe Adam Green achieved what he wanted to, give us a more modern day horror film that was also a throw back to the likes of Jason Vorheese or Freddy Krueger. I do think the film thinks a little too highly of itself in that regard, but I can't deny that I had a bloody good time watching this piece.
We have our character at a spring break party in New Orleans, one of them ain't feeling the good vibes and decides to go on this haunted swamp tour to cheer up, he's morose like that. One of his friends decides to go with him so he is not alone. They meet a bunch of other people that are going on this haunted swamp tour as well, but things don't go according to plan when the boat hits a rock and begins to sink. Of course things go from bad to worse when the old tale of Victor Crowley that was apart of the tour, is actually true. The tourists find themselves trying to survive the superhuman, deformed and blood thirsty Victor Crowley.
I give Green some props for giving us an actual horror film that feel like it belongs in the same grouping as Friday the 13th, a film that heavily inspired this one. The menace, known as Victor Crowley is indeed, in the words of Arnold, "One Ugly Mother Fuc...you know. The story goes like this, he was born deformed and his father decided to keep him out of public, alone out in the swamp, just the two of them. One Halloween night, a bunch of kids decide to terrorize Crowley by throwing firecrackers at his cabin, bad idea since the cabin catches on fire. His father comes home to a burning house and he grabs an axe to break down the door. Another bad move, since Victor is pushing up against the door from the inside. Axe to the face. The legend goes on to say that Victor Crowley is stuck in that night, his spirit in human form, going on a killing rampage.
The film is graphic, lots of blood and limbs being ripped apart. There are quick cuts of buckets of blood just hitting the walls. If you love that type of stuff, this is the film for you. It's full of cheesy dialogue, stupid characters and cliched horror elements. You have your drugs, sex and deaths all rolled into one neat little package. Horror fans will also get a nice giggle here and there when they see some horror legends lending their talents to this film. Tony "Candyman" Todd, Kane "Jason" Hodder and Robert "Freddy" Englund. Green knows where he is grabbing his inspirations from and it's nice to see him acknowledge it. Even the last scene seems straight out of the original Friday the 13th.
The film is not scary, it seems more like a comedy. The dialogue is very sitcom like and Victor Crowley never matches the vibes of Jason or Michael. The guy doesn't have that iconic feel to him and I predict that years from now we won't even remember who he is, but we will still remember Jason. The backstory to him is just too thin and while he does a great job at killing people, it's not enough to make it memorable. Hatchet is definitely a horror comedy, poking fun at the genre itself here and there.
I look forward to the sequel, which will probably suck. This is a film for fans of the genre, hence the generous rating.
Hatchet
Old School American Horror
Still riding the horror train here, I decided to check this one out because I've heard good things about it. I read on the cover, "It's not a sequel, a remake, or based on a Japanese one. I immediately smiled and grabbed it. Beneath the axe that was plastered on the poster it read Old School American Horror. I believe Adam Green achieved what he wanted to, give us a more modern day horror film that was also a throw back to the likes of Jason Vorheese or Freddy Krueger. I do think the film thinks a little too highly of itself in that regard, but I can't deny that I had a bloody good time watching this piece.
We have our character at a spring break party in New Orleans, one of them ain't feeling the good vibes and decides to go on this haunted swamp tour to cheer up, he's morose like that. One of his friends decides to go with him so he is not alone. They meet a bunch of other people that are going on this haunted swamp tour as well, but things don't go according to plan when the boat hits a rock and begins to sink. Of course things go from bad to worse when the old tale of Victor Crowley that was apart of the tour, is actually true. The tourists find themselves trying to survive the superhuman, deformed and blood thirsty Victor Crowley.
I give Green some props for giving us an actual horror film that feel like it belongs in the same grouping as Friday the 13th, a film that heavily inspired this one. The menace, known as Victor Crowley is indeed, in the words of Arnold, "One Ugly Mother Fuc...you know. The story goes like this, he was born deformed and his father decided to keep him out of public, alone out in the swamp, just the two of them. One Halloween night, a bunch of kids decide to terrorize Crowley by throwing firecrackers at his cabin, bad idea since the cabin catches on fire. His father comes home to a burning house and he grabs an axe to break down the door. Another bad move, since Victor is pushing up against the door from the inside. Axe to the face. The legend goes on to say that Victor Crowley is stuck in that night, his spirit in human form, going on a killing rampage.
The film is graphic, lots of blood and limbs being ripped apart. There are quick cuts of buckets of blood just hitting the walls. If you love that type of stuff, this is the film for you. It's full of cheesy dialogue, stupid characters and cliched horror elements. You have your drugs, sex and deaths all rolled into one neat little package. Horror fans will also get a nice giggle here and there when they see some horror legends lending their talents to this film. Tony "Candyman" Todd, Kane "Jason" Hodder and Robert "Freddy" Englund. Green knows where he is grabbing his inspirations from and it's nice to see him acknowledge it. Even the last scene seems straight out of the original Friday the 13th.
The film is not scary, it seems more like a comedy. The dialogue is very sitcom like and Victor Crowley never matches the vibes of Jason or Michael. The guy doesn't have that iconic feel to him and I predict that years from now we won't even remember who he is, but we will still remember Jason. The backstory to him is just too thin and while he does a great job at killing people, it's not enough to make it memorable. Hatchet is definitely a horror comedy, poking fun at the genre itself here and there.
I look forward to the sequel, which will probably suck. This is a film for fans of the genre, hence the generous rating.