Star Leaf

There is almost nothing to like about this movie. I will give credit to some decent cinematography and some decent (for the budget) special effects. Literally everything else about this movie is terrible. I'd say the writing is the major culprit. Not funny, not scary, not coherent, not dramatic, not interesting. Just a pile of nothing. The movie is mercifully short, at least.

I just want to say, for the record, I give B movies every possible concession. It takes a lot for me to hate on a low-budget movie like this. This movie just sucks. A lot.

At the start of any B-grade movie review I like to make it clear that I generally love B-grade horror/thriller/action movies. However, this was terrible. Bad acting, bad script, bad editing (at one point you see the actor's mouth move but no audible voice). The horror element is not developed very well, the action is cheap and horrible. The characters are not likable. There were some laughs to be had at how bad it was but mostly it was just bad and cringe-worthy. There is really very little to recommend about this movie. Save your time/money and watch something else. You have been warned. Do not watch this movie unless you have absolutely nothing better to watch or do.

Soldier with combat stress is led by his stoner friends into a forest to partake of a legendary drug, and weird dangers emerge from the undergrowth.

Surprising low budget sci-fi hallucinatory type of thing with a message about coming to terms. It doesn't look great, but it's not tediously trippy and the modest effects deliver the menace pretty well. The acting is decent, and while the characters aren't deep there is some nice idiosyncrasy. And the pace is good.

The only thing I didn't like was the music - sounded like an '80s TV show.

Overall good entertainment and good natured.

Bottom line: This wasn't worth the watch.

I didn't have expectations for Star Leaf to be a *good* film, but I did expect it to be a *fun* film we watched around 420. I really like Russell Hodgkinson in Z-Nation and it seemed like they cast him in a similar role for this.

The good news is that Russell Hodgkinson's character is still pretty funny, but he doesn't actually get much screen time. Also, like a lot of these sorts of scifi movies, the park ranger is pretty weird and funny too. He also get's very little screen time. Star Leaf is mercifully short, so it has that going for it too.

The story is disjointed, the hallucinations aren't done well, and the "overall driver" they reveal later in the film just feels strange and forced. It felt like, for the most part, they forgot about what the description of the movie was and just shoehorned in some stuff about it periodically.

Ignoring the terrible story, you will *hate* all the main characters and their acting is atrocious on top of it.

If you keep the world, Russell Hodgkinson, and Richard Cranor (park ranger) then it could be a pretty fun TV show.

This movie has had bad reviews but if I'm honest it is a light hearted adventure into the effects of weed. I thought it was above average and enjoyed the plot. Those who slated it should maybe try some and chillax. The cast was in my mind pretty good, the storyline was believable and could happen. If you haven't woke up after a night camping and was confused about what happened the previous night then you have lived a sheltered life. Don't be so serious it's a movie for gods sake, it's entertainment. No GPS no phone, no photos, no samples just like a whisky distillery. Take the tour and enjoy the experience.