Anyone who’s been to church camp can attest that’s it’s pretty horrific on its own. With a lumberjack-themed serial killer on the loose as well, things can get even worse. When Josh Bear (Creator of Splosion Man, the videogame!) decided to combine both elements in his first feature film, the result was Lumberjack Man; a charming comedy-horror movie with enough blood to satisfy a famished vampire.

The story features Ciarra Flyn, Jasmine Carina, Zach Guerrero and a few others as an ensemble cast of Jesus-praising and pancake-munching teenagers and camp counselors on a visit to the christian camp “Fun Under the Son”. Unbeknownst to them, a demon logger haunts the unholy campground in search of new blood to quench his thirst for revenge. The campers’ only hope lies with local nutjob Dr. Peter Shirtcliff, played by the ever-charming Michael Madsen, who’s familiar with the logger’s origins.

Of course, in both slashers and horror comedies the plot is usually just an excuse to set up gags and gore, so the story progression in Lumberjack Man isn’t exactly on par with the Godfather, but it’s still surprisingly enthralling. I can’t go into much detail without spoiling the experience, but there many bizarre events and scenes that will only make sense when the logger’s origin is revealed.

The Christian camp setup is ingenious and makes for some extremely humorous (if slightly insensitive) jokes, but I feel that the filmmakers could have done much more with it. Most of the characters, except a few naïve but well-intentioned campers and teachers, don’t really fit in with the scenario; stoners and sluts feel out of place in this kind of environment. However, this doesn’t really affect the experience and you do end up rooting for almost every victim and survivor in the film.

A lot of the comedy depended on individual performances and reactions, and all the actors succeeded. Ciarra Flynn (Faith) and Alex Dobrenko (Jeff) stood out with compelling yet humorous characters that react believably to the ridiculous situation around them. The evil logger himself was fun as well, with his exaggerated performance, bizarre pancake fetish and nods to horror villain clichés of yore, not to mention the chuckle-worthy cause of his rampage.

The brutal deaths were also sometimes funny in and of themselves, resulting in a film with no jarring shifts in mood or tone, as is sometimes the case with horror-comedies. You do feel bad for the kids being murdered, but it’s always exaggerated and entertaining enough for you to shrug it off and continue watching. A few rare moments were hit and miss, but the movie was consistently enjoyable.

Lumberjack Man is undeniably a fun and memorable experience that certainly gets better with repeated viewings. Of course, not every scene is quotable and laugh-out-loud funny, but the film has more than enough charm to make up for this. The comedy and deaths were immensely entertaining without sacrificing quality filmmaking. Every aspect of the movie seemed well executed and thought out. This one is highly recommended for anyone up for a few gory and bizarre laughs this Halloween.

Screening as part of the After Dark Film Festival’s “8 Films to Die For.”