Director – Dustin Ferguson (under the name Jesus Satan) (Die Sister, Die!)
Starring – Breana Mitchell, Kia Beason, Andrea McCain and Brandon Aylor
Release Date – 1987 (2013)
Rating – 2.5/5
Tagline – “For every doll lies death”
Shot on video, or S.O.V., has quickly became one of my new obsessions as of late. This little obsession started when I reviewed the 1987 Tim Ritter flick, Killing Spree (read the review here). I loved how raw the film was so I had to look into some other S.O.V. horror films. Over the year I purchased multiple S.O.V. horror films but that obsession took an even deeper plunge after watching the S.O.V. throwback Creeps: A Tale of Murder and Mayhem (read the review here) by 15 year old director Jack Mulvanerty. As Christmas approached I ordered at least a dozen S.O.V. horror flicks but the film I am about to review was not one of those films.
As I ordered these films I noticed Slasher Studios posted a review for a “lost” S.O.V. slasher flick from 1987. The supposedly lost film, Doll Killer, was said to have been filmed in 1987 and additional scenes were film in 1988. Then the director died and the only VHS copy of the film stayed with his widow in Mexico. She held on to that copy for several years until placing an add on Craigslist for someone to restore the film and transfer it to DVD. Dustin Ferguson of 42nd Street Films took her up on that offer and brought the film back to America where he will finally release it on DVD. After reading that I had to reach out to the Facebook page for the film so I could get a copy to review and they were nice enough to hook me up with one!
**Spoiler Alert**The film follows a small town where a series of murders have taken place. At the scene of each murder a small doll that was found placed near the body. Threw in the middle of all the madness is a beautiful young lady who pays her bills by restoring old dolls (fitting huh?). As people, and dogs, go missing a small group of people become marked by a masked man wielding a knife. Is he the one killing these pretty twenty-somethings or is something far more sinister (and small) wreaking havoc on this sleepy small town?**Spoiler Alert**
When I first heard of this film I was completely mesmerized with the film’s history and back story. True genre fans are always looking for that lost film and none are more rare than the micro-budgeted S.O.V. films of the late 80s. So back story of a lost S.O.V. slasher was definitely alluring. However, after finally watching the film I can tell that it is not a real S.O.V. flick from 1987. In stead, it is a beautiful throwback that was painstakingly made to look original. The director, Ferguson or Satan (whatever you want to call him), has an eye for detail and it shows throughout the entire film. Every shot of every scene was meticulously made to obstruct objects that could help date the movie. That makes this film a brilliant attempt to be genuine and it surpasses any fake S.O.V. flick that Warlock Video has ever released.
With that being said, this film did fall short of my expectations. The film is flawless when looked at as a modern S.O.V. horror attempt. However, as a low budget slasher it just falls short.
The acting in this one is not the best I have seen in film and S.O.V. flicks alike. The entire cast looked natural in front of the camera but had a hard time interacting in a natural way with one another while being filmed. This is one of the many instances in indie horror where experience would have went a long way.
Now, as for the story…I fucking love it! The film’s story and back story is nothing short of brilliant. The story for the film is actually a pretty fun take on the killer doll/slasher sub-genres and when combined with the whole “lost” back story makes for one hell of a movie experience. Sadly, the story is hard to follow due to the editing of the film and the pacing. The film really needs to be cut down just a bit. Don’t get me wrong, the film is not that long but a lot of the scenes just seem unnecessarily long which makes it difficult for the viewer to pay attention.
Finally, those looking for memorable kills and gratuitous amount of blood and gore will not find them here. The film relies on the atmosphere and tension that slashers and S.O.V. flicks were known for. Overall, this film is a beautiful attempt at bringing back that look and feel of S.O.V. horror but falls short as an entertaining film. However, I believe this film needs to be seen at least once due to the amazing marketing campaign it underwent.
