Review of Hatchet (2006) by Kaylee L — 16 Apr 2009

We meet our protagonist (or main character) in the beginning of the film - an average looking male who actually seems to have some taste since he's sick of the boobs and booze surrounding him at Mardi Gras. He talks a fellow friend into accompanying him on a "Haunted Swamp Tour" where they meet up with a small group of tourists. Of course something bad happens and the group ends up stranded in the neck of the woods where the legendary Victor Crowley lives. Soon the group members begin to be picked off one by one.

I was pretty disappointed with this film, after waiting for so long for it to come out and hearing how great it was, I was stoked to receive it for Christmas....and THEN I watched it.

I understand that it was supposed to be a throw back to 80s horror, and that's what excited me the most - I didn't realize they were going to make it stupid on purpose. Some 80s horror is pure cheese and fun to laugh at, but a lot of it was fun because it was unintentional. It just felt like the film was trying too hard to be funny, and that just got really annoying really fast.

The acting was pretty bad as well. The actors could not carry off the "humorous" lines they needed to deliver, which made the film worse. The successful 80s slashers often had decent acting in them - but, aside from the cameos, this did not. Also, don't get too excited about Tony Todd and Robert Englund in the cast, they each only have about five minutes of screen time each. (Yet, they were probably the funniest out of everyone.).

The highlight for this movie was definitely the effects and the kills. They were different every time, and slightly more inventive than what we've seen in some recent slashers.

Overall, it's a decent watch if you go in with low expectations. I guess this is what I get for buying into the hype, eh?