Abbreviated Entry...
So most of June has been pretty brutal for me schedule-wise. Big Time Life Events™ of close family members (weddings/funerals/reunions) have conspired to make the movie-every-day thing rather difficult. I've still managed to watch one every day, but the end result of everything life has thrown my way is that I'm as exhausted as I've ever been. So to keep my sanity (and this blog going), I'm going to do things a bit differently for a little while - I watched the movies, but rather than the standard entry, I'll just do a little synopsis, a little imdb research, quote some of the reviews (can you do that?) and bounce off of them. Followed up by my general impressions.
Okay, thanks!
Killer Holiday
A group of young assholes are going on a Spring Break trip down Route 66. Unfortunately, they end up at an abandoned Carnival/amusement park where a crazed killer is on the prowl. And most of them get killed. Sadly, there is no killer clown in this film, despite what the artwork on the box would lead you to believe.
Killer Holiday was a fun ride. I liked the cast and the setting. It had a unique style in which it was shot and a twist ending I didn't see coming. Several kill gags successfully got me squirming on my couch and I liked the story. Got a bit too dark sometimes for me but overall it added to the creep. Some gnarly make-up effects too. The TV into water bit was terrific
-Thanks "Michael Bayouth" via imdb
The characters in the film are all the annoying partying types - except for the Final Girl who is kind of a nerd but would probably be really attractive if she just let her hair down and lost her glasses. So right from the get go you've got the kind of slasher-ish movie where you are pretty much just waiting for the kids to die. I think this type of film needs either great kills, an excellent bad guy, or a good story/twists - and sadly, Killer Holiday has none of those.
The film is never quite sure if it's a gory slasher or a Saw-type death trap movie... one kill in particular (the TV bit mentioned in the review) is just way too convoluted. The kills are never outright bad, but not anything you'll remember once the film is over.
I will say that the film is pretty well-directed/edited. Killer Holiday does suffer from being a little too music video-y at times, but generally speaking it looks good. The overall style is what probably saves it from being a total drag.
Often times, when a generic horror film is as lazy and predictable as Killer Holiday, the producers try to spice things up by adding something that will trick viewers into seeing it. Sometimes it's a unique location, other times they will make the film more comedic, and the most common trick of all is to have an attractive cast, that is wearing very little. Killer Holiday tries all three, which should tell you something about the story!
-Thanks "Tss5078" via imdb
The setting is actually pretty neat. It seems easy to just set a horror film in an amusement park, but I thought the set-design for the main park area was really well-done and appropriately creepy. Also, there are a couple of scenes that take place in a "bottle ranch" - shot at Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch (google image search here). I have literally never seen anything like it - so that was kind of cool.
In the end I have to say, this movie is worth watching, even if you have your doubts give it a chance, maybe you will be surprised.
-Thanks "Daniel BigBoss Hogarth" via imdb
And maybe you won't.
That's a bit harsh. Killer Holiday isn't totally bad. There is at least some effort on display, but it never really gels. It's too bad - the amusement park set is really cool, and the film has a unique sense of style. Ultimately though, it's bogged down by annoying characters and a story that just doesn't work.
I would not recommend this film.
No comments:
Post a Comment