Director: Adam Green
Year: 2018
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: Hatchet 4
Genre: Slasher
Plot:
Having survived the original massacre, a former paramedic finds himself in a group of people who crashlands in the same swamp with the deformed killer he escaped previously as they resurrect him for another rampage in his home swamp and must rely on his experiences to get away alive.
Review:
This is yet another enjoyable entry in the franchise. Among the best aspects of this one is the way this one goes into dealing with the backstory to the previous entries. Not only does this one take great consideration in playing up the connection to the past involving the decade-long journey by the one character but also giving this a lot to like with the setup of the legend in the years since the original incident. Taking on the current form of publicity and exposure that would be found in a modern environment regarding those types of flash-in-the-pan celebrities that dominate the society.
That gives this one plenty to like heading into the motivation for the upcoming massacre with the film really scoring nicely with the usual slashing antics which keeps this one hurtling headlong into the fun slashing antics that occur. The series of attacks here are just as much fun as they were in the past, from the opening assault in the swamp to the battle to get out of the rattled plane against the trap he sets up for the group as well as the different one-on-one battles out in the swamp where the creative encounters are just as much fun as they've always been. Managing to mix together the use of bombastic, over-the-top action that never once comes close to being realistic or plausible in any sense and some genuinely creepy or chilling as when he pops up out of the darkness at the shack or the surprise appearance at the plane which really goes well together towards creating some great action-packed attacks in the final half.
The cast here does fantastically which manages to work in its favor as well. Moving Perry Shen's Andrew to the real final-hero role is a great move which gives the awkward character more time to really shine here. The film team of Katie Booth as the determined director Chloe, Chase Williamson as her aloof assistant and boyfriend Alex and Laura Ortiz as the calmer, rational production manager Rose form a nice trio that we get to really care for here which makes them a good group to follow. The pill-popping assistant Kathleen played by Felissa Rose is a true scenestealer as her money-hungry shark of a character is a great addition to the franchise and has the film's best scenes. Likewise, with Tiffany Shepis in a rare restrained role and nobody else really embarrassing themselves, this is a fine edition to the cannon.
Combined with the usually stellar special effects work on the graphic and gruesome kills, these here are what work as the film does have a few minor flaws. The main issue here is the rather long amount of time it takes to get to the main setup in the swamp as it takes too many storylines to get fleshed out to get to that point. This one too many that don't make too much of an impact which is quite surprising as it features way too many that hold up the pacing, and it gets worse as there's no reason to keep them inside the broken plane as long as they are which also holds up the pace. Likewise, the only small issue here is the rushed feeling this gives in comparison to the other entries which didn't need as rushed and breakneck a pace that this one flies through in the finale which just seems to end without really setting itself up for anything. These here are the minor qualities that hold it back.
Overview: ****/5
While not the classic entries in the slasher cannon that previous entries were, there's a lot to like with this as it still holds up enough to be highly enjoyable. Definitely dive in on this one if you're a fan of the series thus far or just enjoy these kinds of throwback slasher style films, while those that aren't won't be won over by this one.
Comments
Post a Comment