The other night I was bored and browsing the free movies my cable provider offers. Trail of Blood sounded like the best of the bunch so I decided to give it a shot. Read my review below!
Trail of Blood is written and directed by Joseph and Justin Guerrieri. It was executively produced by “Jeremiah” producer and original Piranha director Joe Dante. Cast members include former Emmy Award Nominee Robert Picardo (The Howling, “Star Trek: Voyager”), Tim Barraco (“NCIS”), Trevor Torseth (Lake Dead, “Look”), Kandis Erickson (Séance, “Masters of Sex”), Mackenzie Mason (Halo 4), Ray Campbell (“The Shield,” “Breaking Bad”), Danny Vasquez (“The Millers”), and many more.
Trail of Blood is a bloody suspense thriller. “On a weekend camping trip deep in the forest, Jim – a young U.S. Marine enlistee – and his friends stumble upon the murdered bodies of a vacationing couple and are taken hostage by a deeply disturbed war veteran on a sadistic killing spree, leaving Jim and his friends fighting to get out of the forest alive.”
Okay… Where do I begin with this one?
I was pleasantly surprised to find that the quality of film was better than I anticipated. Often in independent films that take place in the woods, the camera work is shoddy and the quality of picture looks slightly out of focus and glossy. It’s amateurish, but common place, and I’m glad that Trail of Blood invested in a decent camera and decent camera man! Sometimes it’s little things like a camera that is a couple hundred dollars more expensive than the other that can really help establish a film as a professional venture. In this case it definitely played to the film’s favor.
Secondly, I’m glad that the writers didn’t completely destroy any likability within the characters. Again, a technique often used in independent films (all horror films, actually) is using certain characters as fodder while the main stars of the feature are given time to develop both internally and in planning. Often certain characters are written so horribly that audiences want to see them butchered and skinned alive. The Guerrieri Brothers did an excellent job of creating authentic and realistic characters for the viewers to root for. It makes sense. Would dirt baggy, bitchy, assholes be camping in the woods? No. Douchbags don’t appreciate nature! Having down to Earth, friendly characters in a film set in nature was a wise decision.
Also, the suspense and torture were perfect here. The suspense was slowly built throughout the film. The threat was ever present and you never know when someone is going to be killed. The torture is just the right mix of physical and psychological torture and it used in just the right amount of doses at the right times. Going full force throughout an entire feature can burn out a film pretty quick, so I’m happy that Trail of Blood was able to change the pace every so other scene. Because you know what that does? It keeps viewers interested. Not every horror fan is a gore hound, activity waiting for the next brain to be blown out all over the walls. Some fans, such as myself, like to include a little bit of entrails along with heart pounding, anxiety causing “what if’ scenarios. Trail of Blood isn’t going to win awards for FX or fright, but every other element is present and certainly qualities this as a full fledged horror flick.
The one thing I did not like, and this could just be me being hyper-sensitive, is the use of all the “what determines a military man” talk. Something inside me finds it disrespectful to America’s current soldiers and our veterans. Everyone’s story is different. Everyone’s battle is different. Trying to squeeze millions of American’s personal traits, thought processes, and survival stories into one movie came off as a little disrespectful. For example, I could have appreciated the plot a lot more if it focused on the killer suffering from a drug fueled bout with PTSD or a boot camp expedition gone wrong. I frowned upon the whole “former crazy marine” vs. “future happy marine” scenarios and the “what determines a real marine” arguments.
With Joe Dante holding some of the reigns on this feature, I’m not surprised I found it to be mostly enjoyable. As far as a rating goes, I’ll give it a 7 out of 10. All the right elements were in place, such as a good script and a talented cast, but every aspect of Trail of Blood seemed to be just a step behind where they needed to be. Maybe with a stronger budget and more time this could have turned out a little better, but it’s far from shabby.
