Released: February 2018
Director: Adam Green
Run Time: 83 Minutes
Not Rated
Distributor: Dark Sky Films
Genre: Horror
Cast:
Parry Shen: Andrew Yong
Kane Hodder: Victor Crowley
Laura Ortiz: Rose
Dave Sheridan: Dillon
Krystal Joy Brown: Sabrina
Felissa Rose: Kathleen
Brian Quinn: Austin
The horror genre, like science fiction, is one of the most versatile genres in the history of film. In fact, it is one of the oldest genres in the industry. There are so many sub-genres within horror that it’s almost difficult to fathom. You’ve got horror comedies, horror/action, horror/science fiction, horror/drama, and horror/thrillers. The list goes on and on. A lot of folks don’t like the genre today because there are a lot of films that feature some pretty extreme content. I’m talking movies that feature torture, sexual assaults and other fairly grimy topics. That does not necessarily define the genre. What defines the genre is the feeling of foreboding and dread, with shivers going down your spine. Yeah, you can have the other stuff, but most effective horror movies generally don’t feature a lot of gore or other nasty moments. The slasher film is not one of those. The slasher film exists solely to showcase the various creative methods of dispatching victims. Movies like Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, Laid To Rest, The Collector, and No One Lives. Slasher movies tend to have many things in common: A lone antagonist or villain, a group of nubile young people doing things that they shouldn’t be, and various machinations used to slaughter the innocent. One of the new franchises to show up in the last decade started with a small indie slasher by a then-unknown Adam Green called Hatchet. After a successful showing back in 2007, Hatchet ended up with two more sequels with the last one released back in 2013. Now, 5 years later, we a fourth entry: Victor Crowley. How does it stack up with the first three?
Stories for slasher movies generally aren’t all that complex or even note-worthy. They’re just used to get from one kill to another….you know, the important parts. But I’ll give it a shot with Hatchet. Basically, this series of films revolves around a deformed boogeyman known as Victor Crowley. Victor was murdered during the 60s, because of a prank gone wrong. But, because of some Voodoo curse, Crowley is condemned to return night after night and slaughter anyone that trespasses in his swamp in southern Louisiana. It’s actually not a half-bad setup, due to its location in a swamp. The actual plot of this new film centers around survivor Andrew Yong as he goes on tours to promote his new book detailing his experiences in the Louisiana swamps. While on a flight to the swamp that he was at a decade prior, the plane he’s flying in crashes. A group of wannabe film-makers are also in the swamp when they accidentally re-awaken Victor Crowley and he begins his rampage anew. As I sit here typing this, I can’t help but wonder why this movie even exists. After seeing interviews with Adam Green, I understand his personal reasons for doing the film, but as a matter of franchise practicality, this movie shouldn’t even have happened, considering how final the third movie’s ending seemed to be. This film basically uproots the lore and tosses what we as an audience know about the Hatchet films right out the window. Now, I understand that this movie was made with the intention of hopefully making more. Here’s the thing: You don’t push a franchise just because the audience wants it. You have to push the franchise because you feel that there’s more that can be done with it. Victor Crowley feels like a movie that was made to satisfy the fans. I can tell you right now, that it doesn’t satisfy me.
I can understand the plot and story not being up to par, namely because of the kind of film we are dealing with, but also if the rest of the film holds up. Let me tell you: It doesn’t. Let’s start with the effects. Like the previous films, the gore and blood effects are all practical, and that is a very good thing. It shows that people actually care enough to make the effects feel authentic. I love that. Here’s the problem: The practical effects in this film aren’t that good. You can tell when a dummy is being used and the prosthetics are painfully obvious. Even Victor Crowley’s design seems like a huge step back from the previous film. I get that this is not a realistic movie, but honestly, given the talent that’s involved here, I expect a hell of a lot better. The effects artists for this film worked on the previous two films and those were wonderfully gruesome. The kills here are also underwhelming. While some of them are decent, some of the deaths are off-screen. For a film like this, that is a cardinal sin. Another thing is, is that one of the character’s deaths is unnecessarily cruel, and it’s not at the hands of the boogeyman. I understand that the director was in a very dark place when he wrote this movie, but that death scene was a little too much, considering the overall tone of the film.
The acting is pretty much on par for what you would expect for a film like this….which is not great. A lot of the characters are poorly written as they are nothing more than cannon fodder, basically. The only standouts are Parry Shen as Andrew and Kane Hodder as Crowley. Everyone else is completely forgettable. Most people will recognize Kane Hodder as the dude that played Jason Voorhees in a few of the Friday the 13th films. While almost anybody could play Jason, Kane gave the role a slow and menacing quality that makes the character stand out among all others in the genre. His physical performance as Victor Crowley has always been fantastic and is no different here. He’s still intimidating and creepy as the deformed character. Like Kane Hodder, Parry Shen has been with the franchise from day one, even though he’s played different characters. His sense of humor really shines through.
While the pacing in the previous Hatchet films was almost at breakneck speed, here it takes a while for things to get going. For a movie that’s only 83 minutes long, that’s not a good thing. I get that there needs to be some setup, but it takes at least a good 20-30 minutes before the good stuff starts to happen. Unfortunately, a good chunk of the film takes place on that crashed plane, and while I can understand the claustrophobic nature of that decision, these films work better when people are running all over the place only to get cut down. It’s one thing to film on a single location, but it’s entirely another to film mainly on a single set. It doesn’t work as well as the film-makers wanted it to. Very few things about this movie work like they should.
I’m coming down hard on this film because I’m a huge fan of the first three movies. They were definitely a loving homage to the great slasher films of the 80s and early 90s. They weren’t just freaky, but they were funny as well. The writing was sharp and the characters were memorable. So, what the fuck happened here? Not only is the film setting up for a sequel that might not come, but it feels like a huge step backwards for the series. Do I hate the film? No. Not really. There is some stuff in here that I do like. I like the fact that the effects were practical. I like Kane Hodder and Parry Shen. I also like some of the cinematography which is actually pretty good. Unfortunately, the film is let down by a bad script, bad dialogue and egregiously annoying characters. My opinion on Victor Crowley? Watch the first three and don’t bother with this one.
My Final Recommendation: This one should have been left in the swamp. 4/10