The first day of Frightfest began with the disappointing news that the BBFC had demanded cuts on both I Spit on Your Grave and A Serbian Film. The cuts on I Spit on Your Grave totalled 43 seconds and the cuts on A Serbian Film were 3 minutes and 48 seconds.
Frightfest organisers decided that the cuts were too much for A Serbian Film and decided to pull the film, but have decided to go ahead with the screening of I Spit on Your Grave. Very disappointing news, especially considering the more relaxed approach the BBFC have been taking recently. You can find the official statement from the BBFC here.
Anyway, bad news over and on with day one… America, Australia and the UK were all represented during the first day of FrightFest 2010 with three world premieres. Adam Green’s Hatchet II opened the festival and was followed by the Australian horror Primal and British vampire flick Dead Cert.
Kicking off the festival with Hatchet II was a wise move. Adam Green’s love letter to slashers was 90 minutes of joyful fanservice and splatter filled fun. Picking up from the end of the first film, Danielle Harris as Marybeth (a role played by Tamara Feldman in the first film) escapes the swamp but wants to go back in and is joined by Reverend Zombie (Tony Todd in a much larger role than the first film) and a band of hunters on a hunt to kill Victor Crowley. Building on the mythology of Victor Crowley Green throws in even more inventive kills and the result is not only an improvement on the first film but a solid and entertaining entry into the slasher genre.
Next up was Primal which showed a lot of promise. The film had an nice premise, ancient curse turns girl into a primal killing machine, a great Australian location and early footage suggested good imagery and effective practical effects. Sadly Primal does not quite live up to this potential. An ultimately weak story coupled with lacklustre characterisation (one male character’s only defining characteristic appears to be his desire to take his top off) make the film hard to enjoy. When this is combined with a host of technical issues, including some pretty unforgivable continuity slips, Primal feels like a wasted opportunity.
Last on the Frightfest opening night schedule was Dead Cert, a film that could perhaps be described as high concept, London Gangsters vs. Vampires, but the filmmakers struggle in the delivery of this high concept in any satisfying way. To fans of Cockney hard men gangsters posturing this film may look like a lot of fun but there is little done with this generic trope beyond simple repetition of things seen many times before. The injection of vampires into the mix adds a little flavour but not enough to elevate Dead Cert from the tired cliches and low grade filmmaking that constantly drag it down. The film ends with a definite set up for a sequel so hopefully this first film can provide a base for something bigger and much better.
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Check out the trailers for all three day one films, embedded below.
HATCHET II
PRIMAL
DEAD CERT
Primal trailer via Fearnet
