BY JOE X YOUNG
Adam Green is visiting familiar territory as it’s back to the swamp for Hatchet 4, however it’s not entirely ‘more of the same’ from the Victor Crowley franchise as for some bizarre reason Green has decided to play Hatchet 4 strictly for laughs. The first three films pile on the gore, and this latest instalment is no different in that the practical effects are horrible with plenty of mashed heads and arterial spray to keep the fans happy, yet I’m wondering if it will actually be a crowd pleaser because it is largely focused on humour which for the most part doesn’t actually work well enough.
Plot-wise it’s straight-forward as Andrew, played by Parry Shen is back as a survivor of Crowley’s murderous rampage who is on a book-promotion tour. He is somewhat tricked into returning to the swamp for another round of vomit-inducing violence when the light aircraft he is on crashes within easy reach of Crowley’s shack bringing several people into harm’s way. Among those people are Andrew’s ex-wife who is a chat-show host, and her entourage. They share the plane with a trio who want to shoot a promo piece for a movie about Crowley. Character development is quite basic with stereotypes being the order of the day, yet there are some pretty good turns from Felissa Rose (Sleepaway Camp), Dave Sheridan (Buzzkill, Scary Movie), and the actress who from my point of view stole the show Laura Ortiz (The Hills Have Eyes (remake) and Chillerama). Anyone already familiar with Victor Crowley will know what to expect from the horror perspective as it doesn’t do anything really new with it, and to be honest it does take a hell of a long time to put any meat on the bones with Crowley himself (Kane Hodder reprising his role and looking as if he’s enjoying every minute of it). I can’t say it’s a bad film, even if it does kinda piss on the franchise, but I think if you are going to end a run of a particular character then this is a pretty good way to go out. Not all of the humour worked for me, but much of it was ok if a little forced, and there are plenty of ‘ewwww’ moments to keep you watching. The Hatchet series hasn’t fared too well with reviewers, for example struggling to get beyond a 40% score on Rotten Tomatoes, and I can’t see this latest instalment doing any better, however it is actually quite entertaining, so I wouldn’t write it off entirely. The DVD extras are plentiful, with cast and writer/director commentaries, trailers, interviews and over an hour of ‘behind the scenes’ footage which in itself is worth watching. By the time you read this it’ll be on a UK DVD release. Click here for a chance to win a copy of the film 
COVER REVEAL: THE CHILDREN AT THE BOTTOM OF THE GARDDEN BY JONATHAN BUTCHER
|
Archives
April 2023
|
RSS Feed
|
|