Killer Body Count

Apparently this is a direct to Tubi streaming service film with a sizeable budget. The overall aspect of camera works didn't look too bad as it was passable. The acting wasn't anything special but it wasn't terrible.

The plot is very similar to seemingly every 80's homage slasher we have seen prior. Deals with a group of teens at a summer camp with an unknown masked killer killing off them one by one- with the lead and others trying to find out who's the killer. This takes place at a religious camp of sorts.

This film has some gruesome looking deaths but most are very standard. Slashes through the body with lots of blood coming out, metal poles sliced through bodies, weights crushing people's faces.

The film is certainly long and drags on. Could have been reduced by about twenty minutes, would have helped with its pacing and overall flow.

The very end reveal was rather confusing and somewhat of a letdown. Overall this film wasn't entirely terribly but nothing truly worth seeing.

*Killer Body Count* is like a rollercoaster designed by Alfred Hitchcock, reassembled by Quentin Tarantino, and occasionally hijacked by a teenage boy with a Playboy subscription. It's stylish, darkly funny, and full of twists sharp enough to require a tetanus shot. While it occasionally veers off track, it's undeniably entertaining-like a lurid tabloid that you hate yourself for reading but can't put down.

The plot, a tangled web of misdirection, sex, and murder, is as satisfying as unearthing a juicy Agatha Christie twist. The red herrings are well-placed, and the comedy sneaks up on you like a killer in the shadows, often providing relief from the film's more gratuitous scenes of sweaty titillation. Speaking of which, the sexploitation elements sometimes feel like they wandered in from a *Basic Instinct* reboot nobody asked for, but hey, they'll keep someone entertained.

The cast delivers above-average performances, with a wry charm that keeps things from collapsing under their own melodrama. It's not horror, nor does it need to be-it's a dark psychological thriller with a visceral flair and mischievous smirk. For all its flaws, it's worth a watch if you're in the mood for noir-ish fun with a slightly unbuttoned collar.

Directing and editing killed this movie.

The pacing of the movie is completely off for a teen slasher, dialog between characters take forever; long pauses and slow interactions, this coupled with 10sec of close up face reactions at the end of every line.

The director & editor left NOTHING on the cutting room floor, every scene is extended to the limit, i.e: a car driving up to the gate; waiting for the gate to open, car drives up the path, comes out of the path and continuous on a round about... what the actual f$#k are you thinking. Are you just trying to extended the duration of your movie for the heck of it!? Is this YouTube? Are your trying to monetize ads? Lol.

Forget the amateurish acting, the acting is passable. Just no stars were created or found on this movie, believe me.

After getting caught with her boyfriend, a teen is sent to a religious treatment camp to curtail her believed sex addiction and tries to make friends with the others there with her, but when they start to get picked off by a maniacal killer for their behavior they must stop his rampage.

Overall, this was a fairly solid genre effort. One of the best aspects of this one is the strong starting point offering a great point for not only getting the group together at the camp but a great commentary on the nature of religious camps. The initial starting point for getting her to the camp is a solid bit of modern misunderstanding with the encounter with her boyfriend being witnessed by others yet only manages to get her in trouble despite the severity of the incident and where she was caught doing it. The setup and arrival at the camp where her outwardly rebellious nature even with the kind of proper mental state that would make her an ideal candidate for their services with how so many of their teachings are reflected in her behavior, all providing the kind of fun starting point necessary in this kind of feature. That goes along nicely with the kind of treatment and activity within the camp that sets this one along. Despite the erroneous nature of what sent her there, the rebellious nature of everything she does, it enables her to make fast friends with the other women there who are trying to overcome the same thing only to realize the true extent of their deviant behavior the more she stays there. Playing up the stereotype about the kinkiness of the people who go to these types of religious sex-prevention camps the idea of everyone here being perverted enough to go about engaging in secret spying sessions, have unwarranted trysts with each other, and try to do everything to keep from being caught is a great touch that adds some extra sleaze into this kind of scenario. While it all comes at the expense of the slashing which comes along in the latter half, the main setup of this one offers a lot to like overall. That brings about the film's switch into a brutal slasher feature with the masked killer using their degenerate behavior at such a Holy place as motivation to start picking them off. The fine series of setpieces here is quite fun with the extended stalking scenes at the camp or the moments in the cabin where he chases and stalks the group throughout the cabins, underground tunnels beneath the grounds, or the various stages within the building that allows for a strong series of graphic kills to take place. This features a solid series of encounters with the initial disemboweling at the tent, the barbell smashing the face apart in the special gym, or the big encounter at the campout that offers up some intriguing twists alongside the fun kills throughout. Wrapped together with the fun twist on sexuality where it's mostly directed at the men in various states of undress rather than the women, there's a lot to like with this one. There isn't much about this one that holds it back. The main issue with this one is an overlong and unnecessary running time that makes for a somewhat troubled first half that has a lot more going on than it needs to. The life at the camp where she gets to experience the different personalities there, the reason why she's there, and the various teachings being imparted to her and the rest of the group are handled rather slowly and really could've been sped up somewhat as it takes quite a while before anything remotely slasher-based starts happening due to this slow start. Likewise, the final confrontation goes on forever and tries to pile on tons of twists and revelations at a rate that manages to be somewhat exaggerated where it easily could've trimmed this down to handle everything at a more manageable length. These aren't damaging or overly detrimental but do serve to hold it back slightly.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language, Graphic Violence, Nudity, and sexual content.

While I had never heard about the 2024 horror movie "Killer Body Count", of course I had to check it out, given my fascination and love with all things horror. I had very little expectations to the movie, truth be told, since it was a Tubi movie. But I still opted to watch what director Danishka Esterhazy had to offer.

The storyline in the movie was good, though there was a bit too much focus on showing off skin and sexual encounters. Sure, the storyline in the movie was a pretty straightforward and somewhat generic one for a slasher movie, but it had enough twists and oddities in it to make it noteworthy and watchable. Thumbs up to writer Jessica Landry for managing to churn out something more than just another generic slasher flick.

Everything is not all and well, though, because the movie does suffer from a somewhat sluggish pacing. Parts of the movie seems to take forever to go nowhere. And the obsession with showing off nudity or sexual encounters also dumbed down and slowed down the movie.

The acting performances in "Killer Body Count" was good. And I have to say that especially leading actress Cassiel Eatock-Winnik along with Savana Tardieu really carried the movie quite nicely.

I was rather surprised with the special effects in the movie. The effects were surprisingly good, and they really added a lot to the overall enjoyment of the movie.

"Killer Body Count" is a watchable movie, for sure, but not without its flaws. I enjoyed the movie for what it was, but it is hardly a movie that warrants more than just a single viewing.

My rating of director Danishka Esterhazy's 2024 movie "Killer Body Count" lands on a five out of ten stars.