Dark Forest (2015)
Matt Boiselle
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Starring Laurel McArthur, Dennis Scullard, Stefanie Austin
Directed by Roger Boyer
Directed by Roger Boyer in his inaugural feature film debut, Dark Forest has the look and feel of an 80’s throwback; however, it becomes unraveled by its sub-par performances and inane plot direction, rendering it something that will most likely be forgotten before it gets a chance to breathe.
The film follows Emily (McArthur) and her overly controlling, amazingly douchey boyfriend, Peter (Scullard). After a long run of being abused, a small group of her friends plan a secretive camping getaway to help clear her mind, but Peter won’t be ignored (or deterred) in his declaration of maligned romance, and that’s when the blood begins to spill. Despite its glaringly repetitious storyline, I still dove into this one and was almost immediately put off by the odd visuals, which look as if the movie was filmed on an intensely hazy series of days, giving the camera shots an odd glaze.
If you’ve followed the laundry list of slasher-in-the-woods flicks over the past 30 years, give or take, then you’ll understand that there really isn’t much need to peel the outer layers off of the supporting cast, simply due to the fact that deep down, you know they won’t be around for very long to see the sun rise again.
The film follows a simple set of diagrams: nubile young honeys in the woods, stalked by a kook with a case of murderous separation anxiety – stab, slash, bleed out… lather, rinse, repeat. Seems a BIT over the line that this guy would go to such an insane extent to get back at his girlfriend for heading out for a little weekend soiree, and on one end you could see it as the intrigue of your main antagonist simply snapping, or wondering why (and how) he got to such a bottom-dwelling mental state of being. In any event, it just seems so routine, and there isn’t anything gleaming about watching this twig-like tough-guy taking his frustrations out on a bunch of innocent ladies.
On a small positive note, the gore definitely should appeal to the hounds, and the violence level is ratcheted up a bit (maybe to supplant the barren plot) – and it all adds up to a slasher for a guy who jumped into the bloody end of the pool… and at this point needs a life-preserver. My advice (which is ultimately useless)? Bypass this one if it comes your way.
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Film
Categorized:Reviews
