The Horror Show
Victor Crowley
by Adam Green
I've been a fan of Adam Green's Hatchet series since I saw the first one theatrically in Time Square back when it first came out. I had no idea what it was about as my roommate had hipped me to it without further explanation, but within the first few minutes I was completely on board and ready to roll with it. I bought it the second it was available on DVD and anxiously awaited the sequel. Hatchet II turned out to be exactly what a sequel to a film like Hatchet should be. It kept the same concept of a group of people in the swamp but gave the audience even more gore and chaos to sink their teeth into. Following this, Hatchet III also fit in perfectly with its placement in the series. In classic third film form, III gave us a little more insight and a slightly different dynamic, but it still held the qualities that made the previous films great and ended up being a completely satisfying end to the trilogy. So, end of story, right? WRONG.
A little while back it was announced that Hatchet slasher Victor Crowley wasn't done with his cinematic reign of murder and mayhem. I waited patiently with interest for Victor Crowley to be released and when it was finally available I nabbed it on Blu Ray. So, was this a worthy entry in the already amazing line of films? Absolutely, because Victor Crowley is just as fun and brutal as the entries that proceeded it. Now that we've gotten the big question out of the way, allow me to explain further.
I would recommend watching the first 3 installments before taking on this newest film, although it works wonderfully on its own as well. Let's play catch-up for a bit. I'll warn that the following paragraph will contain some spoilers of the previous films in the franchise, so if you're not familiar and don't want anything revealed, I'd skip along to the next one.
The first Hatchet film centers around two friends who go on a tour in the wrong swamp; “wrong” as in haunted by the bloodthirsty entity that is the tortured soul Victor Crowley. On the trip, the friends encounter a young woman named Marybeth (originally played by Tamara Feldman) who is on the hunt for the slashing maniac she believes murdered her family not long before. What follows is a crisp, articulate slasher that showed what practical gore effects and a unique mind can accomplish. The second film deals with survivor Marybeth (now played by the always-wonderful Danielle Harris) heading back into the swamp with a group of willing participants in hopes of taking Crowley down once and for all. Gore and awesomeness ensues. The third film delves more into the legend of Crowley and ends with Marybeth seemingly taking out Crowley for good, possibly along with herself.
Now we move to the newest film. Victor Crowley centers primarily around Andrew Yong (Parry Shen), the famed survivor of the last hacking and slashing venture that had gone down. Andrew has a personal connection to one of the previous victims (I don't wanna throw in too many spoilers to the previous films so just go watch the first one to see what I mean). Not to mention he came blades close to being just another body strewn around the swamp. Andrew has built quite the nest-egg for himself, writing a book on his experiences as a survivor and doing multiple interviews. He doesn't seem happy with his current situation and is mostly pushed along by his overly ambitious agent, Kathleen, played to perfection by horror fan, and personal favorite, Felissa Rose.
Andrew is a sympathetic character for the most part and finds himself in a tricky situation. The reaction to him and his story has not been positive across the board. Some people see him as a cheap money grubber at best, cashing in on the death and torment of others. At worst, others see him as the real killer who made up some of the killer ghost's involvement to explain away his own guilt. He has some fans, however, which brings us to our other introductory characters. Chloe (Katie Booth) is a huge Andrew Yong enthusiast who is trying to make a movie about the Crowley legend for the ten-year anniversary. She is joined by her boyfriend Alex (Chase Williamson) and her friend Rose (Laura Ortiz). They aren't as enthusiastic as Chloe, but come along just the same.
I won't go into the details, but a series of events lands the various players smack-dab in the middle of Crowley Country, and he's not as distant a memory as some may want to think. What follows is another wonderful collection of creative gore, humor, and pure entertainment. A good chunk of the film involves the characters trying to decide between staying aboard a grounded plane or venturing out into the woods. This makes for an interesting dynamic and gives the film its own hook of sorts. In classic Hatchet form, Victor Crowley does its own thing and how likable or relatable a character may be guarantees no safety from the dangerous situation they are flung into.
I'm a big fan of the Marybeth character, including the performances of both Felding and Harris. One might think that the fact that Victor Crowley strays from her character would leave a hole in the film. However, Adam Green is so skilled at crafting fun characters, it's easy to settle into the new cast. Not to mention we still have Shen doing his thing and Crowley on the screen. Kane Hodder is obviously a legend of the slasher film, hell, the horror world in general, and it's so great to see him take to the series. As always, he's fantastic. What he has to do is so much more than just being big and putting on the makeup and suit. The levels of rage and frenzy, offbeat twitches and a clear thought process, Hodder brings them all to life in Crowley in a way that only a true pro could pull off authentically.
The whole cast is great, with many familiar faces popping up. I've been a fan of Felissa Rose for quite some time, from cult classic Sleepaway Camp to the hilarious Caesar & Otto series. As always, she completely commits to the role and is clearly having a lot of fun with it. Another favorite of mine, Tiffany Shepis, compliments the screen with her presence which is always great to watch. Brian Quinn from Impractical Jokers as well as Tyler Mane, Jonah Ray, and a slew of talented folks get their time in and it's a blast. Dave Sheridan's performance as a local actor is also of note and he really adds his own touch to the project. Whether you're a fan of Hatchet, Adam Green and Joe Lynch's show Holliston, or are just a fan of entertainment, you're bound to smile as you recognize someone.
Shen really shows what he can do in this film as well. His character swings from guarded and erratic to broken and aggressive. At times he comes across so beaten down by life and in other moments he is a force to be reckoned with. There's a complexity there and if he hadn't already won my respect previously, he certainly would have with this one.
It goes without saying at this point that I highly recommend Victor Crowley. The film does what makes the series great in the first place and keeps the concept simple: a bunch of people stuck in the woods with a vicious killer. It puts so much emphasis on making it all as enthusiastic and rich as possible where it matters, never sacrificing the brutality and bloodshed for high-flying concepts that just feel jumbled. It knows exactly what it's doing and it does it wonderfully.
So, I say to you, horror fans of the world, check this flick out, and be sure to stick around through the credits for some extra awesomeness.
P.J. Griffin, HMS
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