Hatchet (Road to Halloween)

In the 1980's horror movies were a little bit different. They were gory with buckets full of blood to an almost ridiculous level and cheesy as hell. Yet, for some reason it worked and these films were great entertainment. "Hatchet" is a throwback to the films of 30 years ago, bringing back all the old clichés and hamming things up even further than before. How can I pass up an opportunity for some no strings fun from this slasher gorefest?

It's Mardi Gras in New Orleans and a group of students have travelled there to have some typical student fun; ie looking at topless girls and drinking till they vomit. For one of the students, Ben, this is not really the atmosphere he is looking for so he bails out to find his own fun. He is followed by his friend Marcus, and after a while of wandering around looking for something interesting to do they find a ghost tour of the Bayou.

They meet up with a bunch of others including, two porn stars and their director, an older couple and a young woman on her own. They take a trip out onto the river at night and when their boat get caught on a tree and starts to sink the trouble really begins. After barely making it to the shore line the story of Victor Crowley rears its ugly head just in time to make matters worse.

Soon, the group are running for their lives from Victor. He is strong, fast and out for blood, so hopefully he will kill the majority of the cast so I don't have to put up with their annoying faces!

"Hatchet" is a great reminder of how outlandish some of the plots of horror movies in the 80's used to be. Totally unbelievable stories, but they were good fun to follow along. Most of the characters are idiots and you are really hoping that they will die sooner or later at the hands of the mysterious antagonist. Without a doubt my favourite thing about the film is the over the top gore. It is ranges from gross out to totally pointless, but that is half the fun with films like these.

The film itself is really just harmless (poor choice of word since people are brutally murder on a near regular basis, but you get what I mean) fun. There is nothing difficult to get to grips with, no Oscar winning performances and certainly not much of a plot. However, at it's heart "Hatchet" does everything that I wanted it to do; it reminds me of all the fun I used to have when I was in my early teens staying up late watching classic slasher films. They were scary back then, but now they are purely for entertainment.

Although "Hatchet" is a great homage to the films of yesteryear, but it one thing...it never takes itself to seriously. The one thing about the slasher flicks of old is that despite their ludicrous plot and acting they always tended to air on the side of serious, even if the opposite is achieved. With "Hatchet", the self parody becomes too strong at times and almost seems to be making fun of older movies rather than paying thanks. In honesty though it doesn't really matter; with cameos from Tony "The Candyman" Todd and Robert "Krueger" Englund shows an attention to detail and a lot of respect.

If you are looking for something that almost verges on comedy, but is still violent, I think this is the film for you. Funny, bloody and a great popcorn flick, "Hatchet" will certainly keep you entertained. Director and writer "Adam Green" knows the genre well and it is certainly an impressive debut, and with the news of the sequel being released this year too, it will give him a chance to show his true props.

Rating 3 out of 5

See it if you liked:
Halloween
Friday the 13th Part 2
Scream

What does IMDB say?

Review by Stephen King