Movie Knight Double Feature Vol. 2

Grab your nachos and Pepsi movie geeks cause it's the Movie Knight Double Feature.

(plays Grindhouse theme music)

Our first movie tonight is....

Slashers (2001)
Director- Maurice Devereaux
Run Time-99 minutes

Story:

Japan's number one extreme reality show is having it's first all-American special! Six lucky contestants, chosen from thousands of applicants, will have the chance to win millions of dollars, and all they have to do is stay alive!

Review: I’ve been wanting to check this film since I read Arrow in the Head’s review of it 6 years ago. I’m glad I sat down and watched it because it was actually pretty good.

Slashers reminded me of a mixture of The Running Man and Battle Royale. Right from the opening scenes I knew I would enjoy this film. It wore its gory violence and warped humor right on its sleeve and made sure us horror fans were entertained along the way. Despite being obviously low budget, Director Maurice Devereaux made it all wrong wonderfully. I love how the film played like it was one big continuous take, with edits being hidden here and there. The sets were great. I especially liked the circus one. One thing I found both cool and funny was when the show went on commercial break both the contestants and The Psychos would have to stay still until the commercial ended and if they didn’t listen, they would be zapped via a collar on their necks. One particular scene had one of The Psychos showing his human side during the commercial. Funny shit! The Psychos were a blast to watch, especially the hillbilly madman Chainsaw Charlie. Dr. Ripper has his moments of fun (he loves ripping off the shirts of females!) but sadly Preacher Man dies too early on to make any true impact. The gore is thick and goopy with bodies being sliced in two, a couple decapitations and more.

Any complaints? Too much talking was going on in this movie. Shut up already! None of the acting was any special but the lead female character annoyed the shit out of me. I wanted Chainsaw Charlie to slice her ass in two right from the start!

“Slashers” is simply a good way to spend 99 minutes. I recommend renting it, it’s worth it.

7/10

(bathroom break)

Our next movie is...

Prison (1988)
Director-Renny Harlin
Run Time-102 minutes

Story:

When Charles Forsyth was sent to the electric chair for a crime he didn't commit, he forever haunts the prison where it occured. Flash forward several years the prison is reopened, under the control of it's new Warden Eaton Sharpe. A former security guard who framed Charlie. When prisoners are ordered to break down the wall to the electric chair, they unknowingly release the angry spirit of Charles Forsyth, a powerful being suffering from a murderous rage, all leading up to the Warden himself.

Review:

Before he cranked out “A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master”, Renny Harlin directed this effective little horror picture. Filmed in a real prison, “Prison” features a great cast, solid special FX and as with all his pictures, great directing by Harlin.

It doesn’t matter how shitty the movie is, Harlin can make any movie look good. Did you see that male witch film he did “The Covenant”? Shitty film but it sure looked good! Thankfully “Prison” doesn’t suck balls. We get a fairly interesting story to keep our attention and a cast that features the likes of Lane Smith, Viggo Mortensen, Tom Everett, Chelsea Field and Tiny Lister. Tag to that the idea to actually film in a prison works extremely well and helped the film have that realistic look. The FX by John Carl Buechler and crew is great and the death sequences are pretty good (the barb wire one hit the spot!) A simple but effective music work by Richard Band and Christopher Stone and Harlin doing his slick and stylish thing and we get a winner.

Any complaints? For 10 seconds in the finale we get to see the zombified corpse of the film’s villain. He’s cool but only for 10 seconds!? Come on Harlin, don’t be so selfish.

“Prison” is definitely worth a view for you horror fans out there. Give it a chance sometime, Recommended.

7/10

'Till the next time Boils and Ghouls!