Director – Lucky Cerruti (Kindness of Strangers)
Starring – Sasha Van Cott, Hunter Wilson, and Dorran Boucher
Release Date – 2020
Rating – 4/5
This time last year I was in full Halloween swing watching and reviewing as many horror movies as I could. A Facebook post from a mutual friend opened me up to the world of Dead Vision Productions. The post was for the DVDs of their short Kindness of Strangers directed by Lucky Cerruti. I really enjoyed the short and I followed the page for upcoming releases.
A few weeks ago Lucky hit me up about his newest project. The slasher Freak was his newest creation and he was gearing up to unleash the finished product on the world. Just a day or so ago he hit me up again to review his newest mad slasher. I happily jumped on it. Thanks Lucky!
**spoiler Alert** The film follows five youths who travel out into the wilderness for a camping trip. The area they chose to go with has a legend about a deformed man that kills everyone that ventures into his neck of the woods. They disregard the rumors and go camping anyway but soon come face to disformed face with a knife wielding maniac. **Spoiler Alert**
Kindness of Strangers was a grounded and solid horror short that really helped get me in the Halloween spirit. However, Freak was nothing like that. It was a violent slasher that I was not expecting to enjoy as much as I did. I knew I was going to enjoy it but this is probably my favorite watch of this October and one I can see myself tossing it annually.
The acting in this one is solid. The characters are stereotypical slasher fodder with cliched personalities but it works for the film. The cast does a decent job with their performances but we are here to watch them die. No offense.
The story for this one is one we’ve seen a hundred times by this point. It borrows heavily from movies like Friday the 13th, Hatchet, Wrong Turn, and any other slasher revolving around a freak of nature killing people in the woods. It’s not original but the execution makes it worth a watch. The puppet mixed with the on screen kills really sold the movie for me.
Finally, the film is up front with the viewer on the blood and gore. We get some pretty impressive kills that are bloody, gory, and imaginative. The practical effects is fucking fantastic and the kills stand out especially when compared to other indie slashers. Overall, Freak may be a little less than an hour in length but more than makes up for it with some impressive kills and plenty of gore. This is one you need to sink your teeth into this Halloween season and I strongly suggest you grab a copy when they are available!
