Bloody Axe Wound

Painfully awful movie with a totally misleading star rating. I am puzzled by this rating in fact. The '90s video rental store(necessary for the storyline it appears) precede the age of 99 percent of the actors within the film. I hear there is some nostalgia for this decade lately but it is certainly overshadowed by the hodgepodge of a storyline and/or screenplay. We have not walked out of a theater in many years but this one has surely earned the distinction.

The dad's makeup and the quality werewolf mask alone do not make a movie. The high school cast must also have been responsible for the ratings it received. Gen Z does it again it appears.

I watch tons of horrible movies. I'm always open to independent and low-budget movies (although the huge influx from streaming services has made me hesitant). Bloody Axe Wound could have been just another one of those bad low-budget movies that I would rate low and immediately forget about.

The problem is, it has such a cool concept for the premise and an interesting spin on the subgenre. The premise of them actually doing murders so they could make movies about it is pretty awesome. And the idea of a female slasher villain sounds highly intriguing.

That's why I'm so disappointed in this. It could have been great. And I wish they saved this idea until they could get better funding, writers, directors, etc. If done right, this had the potential to be a movie I loved. Instead, I couldn't make it past the 26-minute mark.

(1 viewing, 1/14/2025)

I've never seen a film that so nonchalantly asks you to simply accept the ridiculousness of its premise. It doesn't even try to explain the absurdity and implausibility of it all. There isn't even anyone filming these murders? I thought I was losing my mind. After about 20 minutes though I realised the only way to get any enjoyment out of the film was to simply sit back, accept it, and go along for the ride. Even then, it's touch and go whether you'll enjoy it.

The one thing the movie does well, and really its saving grace, is that it creates some likable characters. It's hard to make a young woman who murders innocents for profit into a pleasant character, but the movie finds a way. Also some of the side characters are quite well created. And so while the horror and story may not always be working for you, at least you can fall back on that.

Some of the gore was quite effective and it's a nice and short film. It knows not to outstay its welcome. It's not all bad, but it certainly does require some effort on the audience's part. A generous 5/10.

This movie is most easily described as your average teen slasher with a bit of Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon mixed in. We follow Abbie Bladecut, the daughter of a local serial killer and slasher legend. After her father realizes he is getting older, he wants her to continue his legacy of killing innocent teenagers. However, the problem arises when she joins her local high school and is met with kindness and love from the other students. She even finds a potential love interest, which makes her mission to kill rather difficult.

The pitch sounds great, and the movie had immense potential to create something as unique as Behind the Mask. Unfortunately, that potential is not fulfilled, and the movie ends up feeling pretty generic given its premise. The characters are dull and not particularly interesting, and aside from the developing love interest, there isn't much for the audience to latch onto. Even the romance feels generic and disrupts the pacing by creating tonal inconsistencies within the narrative.

Instead of action and kills, we get boring conversations and a fairly predictable romantic subplot. The comedy rarely lands and is definitely not the film's strongest suit. However, the kills are decent and the gore is solid, which is arguably the most important aspect a straightforward slasher needs to deliver.

The movie ends up being enjoyable overall, but it's far from great or particularly engaging. Genre fans might still have a decent time, but with a premise like this, it could have been much more unique and entertaining. Sadly, it just ends up as another average horror release.

[5.3/10]

So where do i begin? This is such a weird movie...

At the start the idea of seeing a movie trough the eyes of a killer (and im not talking POV stalking for audience but more like psychology) is a good idea. We follow this old killer call Roger Bladecut that seem to basically be a cross between Jason Voorhees (for powers and origin story) and a regular business owner...

Then this dude has a daughter... Ok its established she is adopted ... make sense in the context but does it? How was she adopted? Movie never give any clue.

Apparently some locals are working with the killer... Why? No idea... Movie never explained it. Said killer goes after peoples from his own town, kill a TON of peoples, yet peoples still operate like its normal...

My issue with the movie is nothing made any sense. At its core the idea is neat. You got Abi wich struggle between following her "dad" legacy of being a serial killer and then get to know the peoples she aim to murder and realize nothing is black and white. The idea is there.

The romance between the 2 lead is also good. Both actresses act well and the characters were organically interesting. But thats where the good part of the movie end.

After that, nothing in this "world" make sense. You get some generic background on the killer that is litterally plagiarise out of a Friday the 13th (either for hommage or lack of originality) but beside that, its super hard to follow the rest of this absurdity of a background.

My biggest pet peeves when i watch movies are 2 things. Not being interested enough in the characters, and not understanding the "world building" the movie want to present.

In this movie the first was fine, the second was not. I can accept a lot of "science fiction" concepts or basically anything that don't make sense in real life, IF the movie world make it make sense... You understand what i mean? Ghost, vamps, werewolves, aliens, nothings is offlimits in a movie. But you have to give me a "reason" for them to be there or should i say make them "fit in this world you present me".

Sadly i just never found that reason there and it hindered my enjoyement. Its too bad cause like i said the main character and her love interest had chemistry and made me intetested in their story.

Beside that you got some generic low budget kills that are "ok". Decent practical effects, but nothing that truly stand out.

The movie seem to be set in the 90s, due to use of VHS, cassettes tapes and old cord phones, but you never really feel the atmosphere of the 90s either?

Honestly this movie feels like huge wasted potential. Its like they have had a cool idea, but either couldn't go all the way or simply got lost in the way. In the end a very forgivable movie that i won't ever watch again.

That said, the 2 main actresses were good in it and i hope they have actual careers. They were the bright spot for me. Im gonna go with a 5 out of 10 and im generous. Movie is watchable... but only if you turn off your brain and forget any logic.