Director – Brett Kelly (Ghastlies, My Fair Zombie)
Starring – Robin Hodge (Ouija Shark, Murder in High Heels), Joel Elliott (Unholy Night, Monster Pool: Chapter Two), and Peter Whittaker (Homicycle, Raiders of the Lost Shark)
Release Date -2017
Rating – 3/5
Tagline – “Welcome to the great outdoors”
Last week I took a vacation and decided to distance myself from writing reviews so I could recharge my batteries so to speak. When I returned home I was ready to dive back into my movies. I was especially looking forward to having an indie horror marathon. I’ve neglected these films recently and wanted to get back into the films that started my review career. I decided to throw in a few Wild Eye DVDs that I’ve been sitting on for some time. After watching Bonejangles and Clownado I decided to toss in the 2017 Brett Kelly film Countrycide. I want to thank Wild Eye for always supporting Horror Society and allowing us to review your releases.
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows a young man and woman driving across country to attend a wedding. On their journey they discover that they secretly like each other and start to see where this takes them. After a long day driving they decide to pull over somewhere and camp. What they don’t know is that the secluded wooded area they just picked is home to three sadistic men who hunt humans. **Spoiler Alert**
I’ve had this one for sometime before I finally broke down to watch it. I’m a huge fan of Wild Eye and over the years they have released some amazing films from even more amazing filmmakers. Some of these filmmakers I am lucky enough to call friends. However, every once in awhile they release a film with some bland artwork. Countrycide is one of those releases. The film was surprisingly entertaining but I can’t help but judge a book by it’s cover. I was raised during the video store era and looking at the VHS slips was almost as fun as renting movies. Regardless, I shouldn’t have put this film off as long as I did because I really enjoyed it.
The acting in this one is very well done. The characters are rather cliched and generic but the cast did a wonderful job at portraying them. I really liked the 3 murderers and Robin Hodge did a fantastic job as the film’s lead. Sadly, these characters are not that memorable but it works for the film. The story for this one is not nothing unique or something we haven’t seen before. However, it is still entertaining for the most part. We do get a few scenes that feel like they drag on but if you can make it through these you will find yourself enjoying the ride.
Finally, the film does have some blood but don’t expect a gore soaked horror flick. The effects are minimal and most of the kills take place off camera. Overall, Counrycide is a solid effort from Brett Kelly and is worth your time. If you are looking for something that reinvents the genre you will be disappointed but if you want a solid film you have never seen before then I highly suggest grabbing this one.
