Director: Dustin Ferguson
Year: 2013
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Slasher
Plot:
After noticing several strange incidents around the house, a woman begins to think she's the victim of a Halloween prank until she realizes that she and her friends are the subject of a demented, doll-obsessed serial killer and must find a way to stop him before he kills everyone she knows.
Review:
There was a lot to like with this one. Among its better features is the rather impressive throwback atmosphere at work here which manages to successfully evoke the classic look and feel of the genre. Going for the general feel and quality featuring the best way to hold off the look and feel of the guerilla-style filmmaking it was originally shot under which adds an endearing quality rather than a detrimental one. It adds such a retro feel when combined with the overall presentation and approach present here which includes the majority of the film's style and approach for an old-school feel.
This as well works nicely to deliver a series of enjoyable slasher sequences. Utilizing the fact that these strikes follow a rather simple formula of the killer showing up unexpectedly on a victim and having their special doll left behind at the scene, this is a rather fun concept that's given a lot to enjoy about the eeriness of the film overall. Mixing the Satanic imagery creates a rather impressive air as well with the cheesy stalking on display, these scenes come off rather fun and enjoyable enough when spread throughout the film as evenly as they are to keep the interest up overall which makes for the positive aspects here.
There isn't a whole lot to drag the film down. The main factor on display here is the seemingly random storyline that holds back on some of the main details necessary here. Although the initial satanic ritual to summon the doll serves as a fun cheesy moment, the idea of his connection to the titular doll as an adult is a bit of a mystery as it pertains to why he wears the mask modeled after the doll or if there's any Satanic connection to what he's doing throughout the film. As well, the strange idea of carrying the film on even after the killer was caught and stopped feels like a massive cheat for no reason since it doesn't play by the rules of the genre at the time.
The other aspect that holds this one back is the rather obvious use of traditional techniques utilized here to cover up the limited budget and stretch out the running time. The numerous dance sequences of the girls in their room partying to blaring metal or montages of the killer just wandering around and looking for victims in the community creates an extended running time for no reason other than do exactly that. Even the screening of a movie on TV to eat up time highlights this issue, which combines enough with those other factors featured here to lower this one somewhat.
Overview: **.5/5
While it gets a lot to like with its special setup and approach as well as some cheesy fun indie slasher sequences on display, there are enough issues here that end up basically making this a solid enough but flawed slasher throwback. Give it a shot if you're a fan of these kinds of efforts, if you're intrigued about it based on the concept, or a fan of the creative crew while most others out there should heed caution for the most part.
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