The first in our three-part Halloween weekend special is here! And we’re starting things off with a bang. Night of the Slasher is a SXSW favorite and was the talk of the festival circuit last year. Check it out in today’s episode of World of Death now and be sure to tune in tomorrow for the premiere of The Elvis Room starring Bailey Noble, Spencer Locke, Keir Gilchrist, and Corbin Bernsen. Our final film for our Halloween marathon is Sundance favorite Dawn of the Deaf, which airs Monday. Enjoy all the carnage and mayhem this holiday season WOD’ers!
I came out of my self-imposed exile just for this film – and the wait
was worth it. If you’re a fan of 80’s slasher-film throwbacks, then
this is the shortie for you. Director Shant Hamassian’s clever
one-take Night of the Slasher is so much fun you’ll forget you’re
watching a horror film. Hamassian clearly understands why this
sub-genre has produced so many memorable cult favorites and has
analyzed their complex machinations with the precision of a psychotic
surgeon. He exploits every beloved trope imaginable – in fact, our
final girl, played with alarming accuracy by Lily Berlina, actually
makes a checklist for us to follow. And this movie hits all the bullet
points; unnecessary skin, drug and alcohol use (not exactly underage
per se, but we understand the formula), rock and roll, the doltish
boyfriend served up as fodder for the killer (here he is listed simply
as “Bait”) and last but not least, an armed assassin with a
well-defined, and totally distinguished visage. In this case, our
slasher dons a Spock mask – a hilarious nod to John Carpenter’s
masterful re-purposing of a $3 William Shatner Halloween mask.
Obviously, a slasher hybrid must follow a distinct, recognizable
pattern – and conventions aren’t necessarily unwanted, but what
separates this flick from a cadre of other meta-imitators is the deft
camerawork constructed by ace DP Eli Tahan. The one-take wonder that
is Night of the Slasher is not really a one-take pony, rather it hides
about a dozen or so cuts with whip pans DePalma style. The experience
is of constant motion even if experienced filmmakers can see the
wizard behind the curtain. This aesthetic works not just as a recreation
of a cherished era of horror filmmaking, but creates the proceedings an
air of kinetic action. It’s a fast, fun, ridiculous send-up of a type
of filmmaking that has gone into hibernation over the years, but it
waits patiently for that certain director to scare it out of dormancy.
This is that film.
– Ben Lewandowski
World of Death is the web series that fans of independent horror have been waiting for. Featuring short horror films from all over the globe created by the largest variety of talent that a collection has ever been able to boast, WOD provides plenty of blood, guts, screams and laughs for all fans of the macabre. And with episodes averaging around eight minutes in length, WOD is the perfect entertainment for a fan base constantly on the go. Watch it anywhere, at any time, for FREE! New episodes premiere every Monday and Thursday at 10am CST.
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