Don't
Go In The Woods (1981/Vinegar Syndrome Blu-ray w/DVD)
Picture:
B/B- Sound: B+/B- Extras: B Film: C-
Hot
off the success of the very first Friday The 13th,
this 1981 slasher film, James Bryan's Don't Go In The Woods...
Alone (the ellipses are added from the poster art),
delivers many elements of what you would want to see from a slasher:
girls, brutal violence, and some laughs thrown in for good measure
but what it is missing is an iconic villain (like a Jason or Michael
Myers, an era that was just developing) to make it more memorable.
Here, we have a bearded Savage as the killer, revealed not until the
film is almost over, wearing animal skins and sneaking, about which
is more comical then terrifying. For all of the buildup throughout,
his reveal is pretty underwhelming.
The
appeal of checking this film out is for its nostalgic quality. This
was a VHS release that I always saw on the shelf at video stores as a
kid next to all of the iconic slashers and was intriguing mainly due
to its interesting cover artwork. Unfortunately like many over VHS
titles in those days, what's outside is often times better than
what's inside! (Jason Takes Manhattan, anyone?)
Most
of the kills for the better parts of the film are done through POV
camera and while the low budget production is pretty ambitious, it
boasts a fairly large cast. The screenplay is paper thin, with many
moments reliant on characters sneaking around and looking over corner
to help extend the runtime while the voyeuristic camera shot watches
them on. The acting ranges from bad to worse… the bottom line is
for being a barebones independent production from the 1980s, it's not
THAT bad but ultimately it's a one-time watch.
As
something kills a hysterical woman, and a bird watcher, four friends
(Peter, Joanne, Ingrid and Craig) trek through the wilderness. A
tourist is thrown over a waterfall (landing near some oblivious
frolickers) and his mother is wounded, and dragged away. The four
backpackers set up camp for the night, and elsewhere a pair of
honeymooners are attacked in their van and murdered. The next day,
the two couples continue their hike, while an artist is stabbed to
death, and her young daughter is taken. Who is this vicious murderer
and why is he attacking without remorse?
Two
more campers are butchered, and while off on his own, Peter witnesses
a fisherman be murdered by the killer, a spear-wielding wild man
adorned in furs and rags. Peter rushes off to warn his friends, who
the maniac gets to first, spearing Craig, and sending Joanne fleeing
into the woods. Peter finds Ingrid, and after the two stumble upon
the wild man's cabin, they accidentally attack another hiker,
thinking he was the savage. The killer finishes off the hiker, and
wounds Ingrid, but she and Peter escape, and eventually reach
civilization, and alert the authorities to the backwoods psychopath.
Irrational
due to guilt over leaving Joanne behind, Peter escapes from the
hospital he and Ingrid are brought to, and returns to the woods to
look for her. Joanne finds a campsite containing a dead body, then
the cabin, where the killer hacks her to death with a machete. A
posse (which includes Ingrid) is formed to take out maniac, and look
for Peter and Joanne. The sheriff finds the cabin, where he uncovers
Joanne's body, which Peter sees, leaving him even more distraught.
The conclusion deals with a vicious face off between the savage and
our heroes with a pretty predictable conclusion.
The
presentation on the disc is not a flawless transfer by any means with
many shots containing grain and film emulsion, which ultimately adds
to the charm of the presentation. It's no doubt that the film has
never looked better than it does here on Blu-ray disc and while the
DVD that its packaged with doesn't hold up the same, it's still
satisfying from a decent film shoot. Presented in 1080p high
definition with a 1.85:1 widescreen aspect ratio, the film is also
paired with an impressive, lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track
that is crystal clear throughout.
Extras
include several different commentaries with cast and crew, Autograph
Signing Party featurette, TV Promo Compilation, Theatrical Trailer,
Production Still Gallery, Press and Art Gallery, and a Script
Gallery.
-
James Harland Lockhart V
www.facebook.com/jhl5films