The Hills Run Red

In an age where most horror films are either sequels or remakes; one should rejoice when original slashers worth a damn pop up.

"The Hills Run Red" has a knockout hook that sets up quite a decent story. A mysterious "lost" slasher film, called "The Hills Run Red", has many horror fans obsessed with finding it. Such is the case with Tyler, a horror buff, who sets out with his friend and girlfriend to visit the film's locations in order to make a documentary. Along for the ride is the film's notorious director's daughter, Alexa, and once on location the group gets to enliven some true horror.

Good story, solid acting and some decent grue ensure "The Hills Run Red" has some definite highlights and the first half works very well. Present are the irritating "fast-cuts" that have invaded all horror films, it seems, but a decent atmosphere is built and the old "woods-scenario" in slashers never fails when well executed.

A fair amount of jokes and "rulebreakers" enter the film and work surprisingly well (the cell phone bit and the gun (guns are never present in slasher films)) and avoid going over the top. But despite the short running time the film loses steam and goes for one ending too many; both of which aren't too good (don't turn off after the first end credits appear).

"The Hills Run Red" is a solid slasher film for fans of the genre. Most can appreciate the fact that many things are well done here, the film remains faithful to the genre while poking fun at some obvious faults inherent with it and it's quite the gory feast as well. The only ones yawning are not slasher fans to begin with, I think.

Tyler (Tad Hilgenbrinck) is obsessed by the horror movie "The Hills Run Red", considered by those that had seen it the scariest movie ever made, with the deranged serial-killer Babyface (Danko Iordanov) in the lead role. However, the director Wilson Wyler Concannon (William Sadler) and the movie vanished many years ago and there is no available print. His research is affecting his relationship with his girlfriend Serina (Janet Montgomery) that is needy and feels neglected. When Tyler discovers that Concannon's daughter Alexa (Sophie Monk) works in a night-club, he decides to meet her and asks about the missing movie. The woman tells that the movie might be in her father's house in the middle of the woods, and Tyler decides to travel to the spot with Alexa, Serina and their friend Lalo (Alex Wyndham). Along their journey, Tyler films and interviews some locals. During the night, they are attacked by the rednecks, but they are saved by Babyface that kills the assaulters and is controlled by Alexa that runs away from him. Tyler, Serina and Lalo get rid off the ropes, but Tyler decides to help Alexa, disclosing fate of the movie.

The gore "The Hills Run Red" is a movie with potential of cult for fans of slasher movies. The gruesome story is original regarding the search of Tyler for the movie and has a great surprise when he discovers the secret about the Concannon's family. William Sadler has a great performance in the role of the insane director and Babyface is a scary character. The conclusion is extremely macabre and dark, and I believe that fans of this genre will like this movie very much like I did. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Colinas de Sangue" ("Hills of Blood")

Hmm, I definitely second what my pal and fellow reviewer TheatreX stated in his user comment! I am a devoted fan of horror genre as well and I also get a kick out of tracking down hidden gems that are extremely obscure or even considered "lost", but after seeing this film, I must make a mental note to never ever go and fanatically seek for lost backwoods slashers myself! That is what the basic plot of "The Hills Run Red" is all about. Tyler is a horror fan and amateur documentary maker obsessed with the idea of finding a horror film that was taken out of circulation shortly after its release, allegedly because it was too shocking and gruesome, as well as the director Wilson Wyler Concannon who mysteriously vanished as well. He convinces two friends and even the director's daughter, who nowadays is a heroin junkie and works as a stripper, to drive out to the middle of nowhere region where the movie was shot in the early 80's. Deep down in those backwoods, the foursome discovers that the film is real and never fully got completed. The maniacal killer from the trailer, referred to as Babyface, still prowls the area and butchers all trespassers in horribly painful ways. "The Hills Run Red", from director Dave Parker who previously made the hugely entertaining zombie flick "The Dead Hate the Living!" comes as a pleasant and refreshing little surprise in the overall worn out slasher genre. Especially the first half is compelling and innovative; at least if you're an obsessive horror fan yourself like I explained here above. All the little bits and footage and trivia details of the inexistent lost horror movie are truly fascinating. Supposedly "The Hills Run Red" revolved about a killer who cut off his own face as a child, because his stepfather said he was ugly, and replaced it with a doll mask. Director W.W. Concannon was a reputed freak who used real blood from a nearby slaughterhouse and hired a local retard to play the killer. The second half, meaning as soon as the main characters are confronted with the killer and have to run for their lives, feels a lot more like familiar slasher territory again with some implausible and grotesque plot twists as well as a few derivative clichés. Nevertheless, even then "The Hills Run Red" still transcends the majority of backwoods slashers because it literally oozes with perversion and sheer nastiness. The film is chock- full of macabre set pieces, harsh gore, lurid sleaze and vicious undertones like incest and mutilation. Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't these trademarks exactly what the horror genre is all about? Add to all this a creepy horror lullaby that continuously gets repeated ("Hush, little baby, don't say a word…") and a downright depressing climax and you got yourself perhaps even a future classic. The basic premise is reminiscent to the John Carpenter's Masters of Horror episode "Cigarette Burns", but it's more properly elaborated and a lot more identifiable, and it was fun seeing B-movie veteran William Sadler star in gloriously demented role again. Recommended.

Tyler (Tad Hilgenbrink), a film student, hopes to track down a legendary film, the titular "Hills Run Red", which was lost and is rumored to be the most violent horror film ever. He finds Alexa (pop star Sophie Monk), the director's daughter, and they go on a hunt to the very heart of cinematic evil.

Director Dave Parker (best known for Full Moon's "The Dead Hate the Living!") has done it, making the film of his career. I don't mean to discourage Parker from making more films, but I find it hard to believe he could match this level of intensity again. The action, the violence, the gore... as far as slashers go, this was the pinnacle. There were a few good ones in the past few years ("Hatchet" was alright, "Behind the Mask" was very good, "Hack" was amazing). This may be the best yet.

For horror fans in my generation, the last great decade for horror was the 1980s. Anything since then has been largely rubbish. In "Hills Run Red", we have people who know this, that emulating the 80s is the best way to make a successful and enjoyable picture. The added story of tracking down an obscure film from the 80s is even better.

You may think the slasher film is dead, especially if your name is Adam Rockoff. But the "Friday the 13th" remake tried to prove otherwise, and this film sealed the deal. The days of "torture porn" are coming to an end, though "Hills" does give a nod to that subgenre, too. The only thing missing is the hand-held subgenre, but I can personally do without that, as I can only recall one good film of that sort (Ruggero Deodato's "Cannibal Holocaust").

I have to point out this is William Sadler's darkest role ever, and he plays it well. Quite a difference from Death in "Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey". But the real honor goes to Sophie Monk (who, I can personally attest, is a sweetheart). She plays a stripper, a heroin addict, the daughter of a demented auteur. With a past in pop music, this is a big departure and she rides it like a pro. While I don't suspect Sophie will be a horror regular, she'd be welcome if she wanted to come back.

See this movie. Worth owning, but if nothing else, rent it. Great addition to any collection, this is what horror fans crave.

This is a pretty good "B" slasher movie, and was actually entertaining for most part and the nudity especially by elevates it. Because in slasher movies such as this, the plot doesn't matter as much although it's decent in this film for a slasher flick. The plot was interesting and the acting wasn't that bad either, it can be said the same for the atmosphere and there were some good tense moments as well. The story is about a wannabe slasher director who goes on a hunt for a film called The Hill Run Red, which is said to be the most brutal and gruesome slasher flick from the 80's. So him and his friends venture out into the woods to find it, but they are in for more than they bargained for. Although some people that aren't into these types of genre might be turned off by it, but for those that are slasher fans will most likely enjoy. Even if it could have been been better, it was still surprisingly entertaining and is worth checking out, especially for slasher fans.

6.3/10