This was a mostly disappointing triple feature of masked killer movies for me, so let’s find out why.
THE SCOUT (2021)
When you feel the need to pack your IMDb movie page with reviews from friends saying things like, “so scary”, “fun and violent”, and “smart and clever”, which is a common practice on many indie horror flick IMDb pages, you should make sure you actually deliver on those claims, and these movies rarely do. The last 20 minutes of this 80-minute film are when all the slashing action happens, so it is a challenge to make it that far.
A micro-budget film crew is holding auditions for their new sci-fi slasher. There’s light humor as we sit through an endless number of auditions, but the understated humor can’t sustain it for the amount of time that demands it.
We are then introduced to the finalized cast and crew of their film at a round table meeting.
We then follow them to a shooting location that falls through.
We then follow them to a new shooting location, at which point this really begins to feel like a behind-the-scenes documentary about making a movie rather than a horror movie.
Throughout all of this there is loads of conversation about horror movies, serial killers, and Hollywood pedos, which I guess is meant to keep impatient horror fans riveted until someone is actually killed. I personally wasn’t riveted by the time the first kill happens at 40 minutes in.
55 minutes in there’s a prank scare.
With only a short time remaining, the cast and crew arrives at their destination, everyone is murdered one after another as they all run screaming from the killer, and the big twist is revealed. There was really no reason for the film to compress the whole slasher part into fifteen minutes in order to reach this point. Like many film set slashers that came before it, the kills could have been taking place periodically while they were shooting their movie, delivering a full-length slasher instead.
WEEKEND DEADAWAY (2024)
This is another slasher with everything crammed into the last twenty minutes. What is with indie filmmakers lately not knowing how to create a slasher that carries through the entire running time of the film?
We meet this couple, and after some time killed with the main guy and one of his friends at work, they meet up with all their friends at a bar. This is such a likable, pretty group of friends that they deserve a substantial slasher, but they didn’t get it here.
Eventually they arrive at a lodge in the woods. The hostess who welcomes them is weird, which makes it pretty clear what kind of trope is ahead of us. It is also a clear sign that this is going to be a cliché film when the two Black guys in the group start talking about being the first ones to die if they are in a horror situation. When referencing a trope in a movie becomes a trope itself, it’s time to come up with some different tropes to reference.
45 minutes in the killer starts making appearances, including the main girl having a dream of him. Yes, it’s one of those movies that uses a nightmare sequence for a scare when the character dreaming doesn’t even know the killer exists yet. Argh.
The group sits around a fire telling stories, and eventually they split up to swim and have sex.
64 minutes in the first couple is killed. Within a matter of minutes, everyone is killed except the main girl. She gets a brief chase scene, it’s implied they’ve unknowingly been eating human meat for dinner, and the sheriff finally shows up just when she needs him most. If you don’t know where this is going, you’ve probably not watched many horror movies.
Oh, and if you need more evidence that there’s nothing original going on here, it turns out the group is in Crystal Lake County. Sigh.
PAYMENT RECEIVED (2023)
This is a home invasion movie, and I’m going to be right up front about it—two hot cuties who both get shirtless are the only real highlight.
We meet a band performing on stage. The hot guitarist is shirtless, and the hot lead singer’s voice is so drenched in autotune it would make Akon jealous.
Next they are invited to an audition, so they go on a road trip. They have an encounter with a creepy as hell clerk at a convenience store.
There’s also a bloody goat head nailed to the wall next to the restroom in back.
And in the most clever twist ever in a horror movie, the girls go into the restroom and are shocked to find it is beautifully clean.
When the group arrives at the rental house they’re staying in, we get some relationship drama, and then in a flash they all see a masked figure enter the house.
I’ve never seen anything like this before. The group just sits around taking cover while wondering how they are going to get out of the house which, it turns out, has electrified doors. Two masked figures periodically pop in to say hello and hit them with various projectiles: a nail gun, darts, and a water gun full of acid. Members of the group occasionally run off, I think in an attempt to turn off the electricity.
The hot lead singer steals the show while running around shirtless, landing this one on the stud stalking page.
Eventually the group does what they should have done all along. They simply gang up on one of the masked figures and take him down in seconds. That’s how frustrating this film is. If you love home invasion films, I would still recommend just looking for a different one if you need a fix. I’d also recommend totally watching this one if you need a fix of a hot shirtless man covered in blood.
