Director(s) – Joe Davison (Up All Night with Rhonda Shear, Frost Bite) and Roy Knyrim (Death Racers, Cemetery Gates)
Starring – Joe Davison, Kaleina Cordova (Knock Knock, American Horror Story), and Chelsea Jordan (On-Site, The Itch)
Release Date – 2025
Rating – 3/5
I absolutely love horror comedies. While Savini’s take on Night of the Living Dead was my introduction to the genre, it was films like Evil Dead II, Army of Darkness, Dead Heat, and so on that really made me a genre fan. My shift from pop horror to indie horror hasn’t been without it’s own disadvantages. I miss watching polished movies with decent acting. I love the passion, originality, and creativity that accompanies the indie films but a lot of times they feature rough acting and barely resemble a movie. There has been some well made horror comedies pop up over the last decade or so. The Moleman of Belmont Ave., Deathgasm, and Psycho Goreman just to name a few.
Several months back I received a press release for the horror comedy Sorority of the Damned. The film was recently added to Tubi and they were trying to get the word out. I decided to check out the trailer, which I rarely do, and was surprised by how fun it looked. I went ahead and added it to my watchlist. After a few snow days here, I decided to check it out while I was snowed in. I’m glad I did because it was a lot of fun.
**Spoiler Alert** The film follows an educated man turned plumber who works for a sorority that often flushes feminine hygiene products. He turned his back on his career when he learned that he comes from a long line of monster/witch hunters. This comes in handy as the sorority he is employed for is about to be become by ancient witches with plans of taking over the world. **Spoiler Alert**
I went into this one with an open mind expecting to have some laughs but I was rather disappointed in that regard. I grew up on Pee Wee’s Playhouse, Beavis and Butthead, South Park, and the like so my sense of humor is pretty broad. However, this film was not funny but it was still a lot of fun for what it is.
The acting in this one is one of the better aspects of the film. Joe Davison wasn’t doing it for me. His Will Sasso inspired performance wasn’t as funny as they thought and it made a lot of the scenes feel goofy in an unfunny way. With that being said, I really enjoyed the supporting cast. The women are beautiful and seriously talented in front of the screen. In fact, I was impressed by them so much that I started looking at their previous films on imdb.com while I was putting this review together.
The story for this one is pretty clever but I kind of wish that it took itself a little more seriously than it did. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love horror comedies but a lot of time the humor doesn’t find its mark. Sadly, that was the case here. The jokes are repetitive and most of them feel very forced. With that being said, I loved the legacy of the witch hunter, the sorority being a front for an ancient coven, and the depth some of the characters had.
Finally, the film has some blood, fun costumes and make-up, and some really fun sets. It’s not a gory flick and does incorporate some cheesy visual effects but I appreciate how much time was spent on the practical effects with this one. Overall, Sorority of the Damned is the kind of movie I could see myself renting as a kid in the late 90s. It would have been a lot of fun to watch with some of the mid-90s Full Moon flicks. While it does have some issues and lacks the humor they were going for, it was still fun especially for a first time watch. Check it out on Tubi!
