Legacy of Thorn

Attacked by a raging killer, a group of teens caught in his wrath are soon caught in a never-ending cycle of brutal rampages with the killer appearing every Leap Year to carry out a bloodsoaked rampage against a specific series of targets in his hometown and must find a way of stopping him.

This was a generally fun if somewhat convoluted genre effort. Among its better features here is the strong setup that offers a fun alternative to the usual old-school slasher antics. The whole idea of the killer cursed to appear every time a Leap Year arrives and having enough mystical powers that prevent him from being killed by traditional means makes for a solid concept that gets a few intriguing elements along the way. With the whole thing including a strong touch of the occult as well as a claim about a mystical cult controlling the masked killer and being at the forefront of his repeated summoning and appearances over the years works nicely to aid that setup. Even more, is the time-hopping going on where it shows what happened to a group of teens caught in his rampage as the modern-day scenes show them going out and stopping him based on the knowledge they get from the flashbacks in the previous rampage several years earlier giving the scenes context and becomes quite enjoyable for how unique the whole thing appears. That sets the stage for a solid enough series of stalking scenes featuring the inhuman and hulking killer going around knocking off the group. Splitting this into the two different periods offers up a fun way of handling the killer where a character is knocked off in the present only to be involved with the group getting targeted in the past so it feels like a far bigger cast is concerned than expected. These stalking scenes are quite fun, with the opening ambush trying to electrocute the killer coming off fairly well, setting the stage for later scenes to come. Whether it's the ferocious gunfire against the ineffective SWAT team trying to stop him or the massacre of the cheerleaders practicing their routine in a gym that includes some far more effective kills and splatter than expected, the kills here are incredibly fun and bloody with how graphic they become. With a finale that makes this one a lot of fun as they try to put a plan into motion to stop the killer while they're under a deadline, this one manages to be quite enjoyable overall even if there are some slight issues here keeping this one down. The biggest issue is the somewhat more convoluted than necessary setup of having the film take place in different periods and shift around where it is in the timeline. Starting at the present to then go back and see what they were doing and what they did and then going back to the present to continue on the story is a bit of a difficult road to take with how the whole thing plays out, especially when killed characters appear in the past. It's a bit disorienting and distracting the first time, which could've been handled a little easier. There's also the general lack of context for what's going on as the killer appearing on every Leap Year to why the teams are working with each other so the confusing timeline is further confused by an approach that doesn't lead to a lot of questions answered to get things going. These few issues are what end up bringing it back.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence and Graphic Language.

Thorn (aKa The Legacy of Thorn) is a 2016 slasher film written, produced, composed, edited, shot, & directed by the one man army known as Mj Dixon (Creepsville, Slasher House 1/2, Cleaver: Rise of the Killer Clown, & Hollower). It's based off the 2009 horror short under the same name. It opens up with Jessica Lawrence (played by: Jade Wallis from I'm Still Here, Beneath a Neon Tide, & Blaze of Gory) counting down the days until the anniversary of the night that changed everything. It shows her trapping her long awaited enemy with some help from Eric (played by: Paris Rivers from Grindsploitation & Slasher House 2), Clark (played by: Craig Canning from Dead Walkers: Rise of the 4th Reich & The Guvnors), & Alice (played by: Jane Haslehurst from Zombie Armageddon: The Ultimate Collection & Inside Fear). Four years ago, the very popular high school student Jessica thinks she's on top of the world with her life. Nothing can wrong with her current luck. She's celebrating her sweet sixteen with all her friends from school.

A local urban legend known as Thorn (played by: Richard Daniel Thomas Holloran from Slasher House) decides to crash her party & ruin her perfect little existence in one night. Her birthday will never be the same! Cherished memories quickly into a unforgettable massacre. The monster shows up every four years to sacrifice his prey & it's time for Jessica to relive her past nightmare with her new friends by association to stop Thorn from killing again on his usual murderous tradition. Thorn wants to repeat his destruction that will leave no survivors this time. Can they break the curse & save everyone from their gruesome death?

Mj Dixon basically did everything for this movie & that's very impressive! Sometimes when someone has that much responsibility & it shows but not here. He gave every aspect of this production the same amount of quality. Is this the new horror icon when it comes to British slashers? It's possible, it definitely delivers all the goods when comes to expectations to the beloved sub genre. High body count? CHECK! So many people got slaughtered in this that I lost count which is awesome. Lots of gore? CHECK! This movie is loaded with blood & it features some devastating kills. Cool looking killer? CHECK!

Thorn is kinda resembles what you would expect ChromeSkull's cousin to look like. He has a similar look to that horror character. Final girl? CHECK! Jade Wallis was solid in this plus she had an amazing ass which the director makes sure you see it multiple times in this. Good backstory? CHECK! Director Mj Dixon who also was the cinematographer for this almost made it feel like two different movies with his stylish approach. Both stories had it's own vibe & really stood out from each other. The only thing it really lacks is nudity when it comes to the usual favorites for slashers, it has a few nice moments but nothing crazy but it makes up for it in all those other departments! I've reviewed a decent amount of flicks from Wild Eye Releasing & this is probably the funniest one so far. It kept my attention & I was entertained ready for more when it ended. Speaking of that, make sure you watch after the credits because it has a few bonus scenes at the end. These days it's very rare to find a quality slasher but Thorn definitely provided that. Like I said before, Thorn has a very stylish look to it so it almost feels like two different movies when watching it. It gives both stories it's own unique vision. The hard rock soundtrack really added to the atmosphere!

I recently discovered Mask of Thorn and then found this, which Is a sequel I suppose, but made before it? I transpires that these films take place in an extended universe that kind of crossover like the old Charlie Band movies sometimes did.

I don't know why, but even thought this an earlier film, its seems bigger and much more epic than the 'prequel'. The scale of it for a movie made on less than 10K is breathtaking.

The actor really give it their all, sometime quite dramatically over the top, but its all part of the charm.

A stunning achievement in low budget film, and I found out that Thorn is in another movie called Slasher House, I guess part of the extended series of films, so off I go to find that.

Picked this one up under the title Thorn, released by Wildeye in 2016. Barebones disc, but very entertaining and well made slasher movie that tells its story in a very complex style.

The film uses flashback to unfold the, somewhat basic, story until it finally reveals the true nature of what is taking place. The effects are well put together with some cleaver cutting to hide budget limitations and the location itself is a real star. Theres also a great performance from a young Idris Elba type that feels at home on the dramatic stage.

The film was originally thought to have been made on over $100,000 but I was informed via another review that its budget was more around $6000.

Thats remarkable in my opinion and deserves the highest commendation. 10 out of 10.