This film starts with a grainy, realistic 90s feel, I loved the elements of vulnerability with the babysitter and two children. However, after the initial unveil of the VHS it began to slip Into a much softer variation of Terrifier.
There are three short stories shown from the VHS however, all are reminiscent of an anthology of short stories, crafted into one feature film, and too be honest it is confusing since it has limited foundations.
Not only do we not know what any of the creatures are, from the cultists in masks, a demon, a scuba- diving alien, and Art the Clown himself, there is no motives it seems other than to capture, torture, kill or rape which leaves a gaping hole on trying to discover any meaningful connection to anything other than an evil entity.
The VHS scene involving a baby being cut from someone's stomach to a leathery faced demon about to have a sexual ritual with a girl sensed it had inspiration from the cult classic Rosemary's baby.
Otherwise, what starts as an old-school Halloween horror fest gradually loses interest, and while the are some macabre scenes, nothing really jumps out and grabs your attention.
Art the Clown played by Mike Giannelli doesn't have the same charisma and clever comedic expressions as David Howard Thornton in Terrifier, and so Art doesn't seem have the same unique spark, or feature improvements such as make-up affects which makes him feel more delightfully "Terrifying"
A notable dislike comes from the fact that Art is a supernatural character and that while being whacked, stabbed, and shot doesn't seem to mortally wound, or impede the crazed psychopath whatsoever. Therefore, Art manages to catch up to his victim on every occasion with little effort or hinderance leaving no likelihood or genuine possibilities for escape. I for one like to see survival, and the arduous journey of self-discovery, but with this franchise the predictability of seeing everyone slaughtered leaves nothing to chance and therefore leaves no legitimate surprises.
It's a shame that an intriguing idea gets caught up too much is the sacrificial gore instead of solid storytelling. There is much we don't know, but also don't understand. While I don't think All Hallows Ever is a completely meaningless gore-filled slasher, I don't think it serves a hell of a lot of purpose at this point other than to shock and terrify the audience on different and resourceful ways to showcase brutal acts of violence.
5/10.
