Butcher Boys

Greetings, a lot of people don't like this movie as much while watching it. All I can do is provide you a breakdown of why I actually enjoyed it and you can take away what you will. Opinions may differ. Alright, some of the acting was shod, and some of the scenes felt silly. Most of the good guy characters were meh but the main female wasn't bad, a lot of main females have terrible sounding screams etc but I found her pretty good and not annoying (a plus right?).. On the other hand some of the villains were rather enjoyable, with points going to Johnny Walter. His screen presence and attitude felt comfortable and natural and very fitting for the collected "boss" of the villains. When it comes to the story if you compare it to a lot of other horror films that have higher ratings I suppose it has a lot more substance. I mean look at most of the Friday the 13th films (to which I am a fan), teens go back to crystal lake for some reason and jason chases and kills them, the end. That's the case with a lot of horror films. Or there is a weak plot thrown in as a excuse for torture porn and rape. I am not saying there is some in depth story or plot twists here, you are at least provided with some crazy setting and characters. As for the characters most of the good guys/victims were more or less forgettable, not a lot of substance but there rarely is in horror. The villains on the other hand were rather enjoyable for me, I liked their mix of rockabilly look (and I guess one looks like joaquin pheonix) and attitudes and the way they acted around each other. They at least made the effort to add various bits of personality to the various characters, some more than others. Music was mostly subtle, eerie sounds etc, nothing fantastic but better than some of the zombie movies lately that blast some trash garage metal. Atmosphere was nice, lots of eerie abandoned little areas and set pieces. Lighting wasn't too dark, off, or weird. The camera work and sound quality was quite decent, not much to say. Basic decent camera work. Well done. Wasn't too ridiculously overly gory and the shots of gore were not terrible, nothing tremendously new but nothing stupid either. And drum roll please NO RAPESCENE IN THIS FILM! I couldn't believe it! I finally get to sit down and watch a good old b horror gore film and didn't have to watch a shitty forced in rape scene. There is some nudity in the film though. There were some stupid parts yes of course, its a horror film. If a horror film void of stupid parts gets made it will probably lose its horror tag. The Amphead guy screaming into the speakers was midly annoying after a bit. I don't think the film is meant to be taken too seriously of course. I struggle between giving this a 6 (one over mediocre, enjoyable but not special) to a 7 which warrants a rather greater bit of interest I felt while watching so I suppose for now I will settle on a 6.5 Hopefully I provided a little insight. Would recommend more for horror fans and gore fans especially those who can sit back and enjoy the crazy.

I wasn't expecting to like this movie but watched it because I did appreciate "Wildman of the Navidad", directed by and produced by the same group, Greeks Productions and Boneboys Inc. This film was very bloody but why not, it is horror people! Kept me not wanting to watch another minute but not being able to turn it off. Not for the light of heart. Waiting for the new one "Red on Yella Kill a Fella". And if you haven't seen "Rio Peligroso: A Day in the Life of a Legendary Coyote (2004)" do yourself a favor and try to get a copy, it is hysterical. The horror movie genre started by innovators like George Romero working on a tight budget but a big imagination. I love to see what newcomers can do with a little money and a camera and these guys do not let me down! Keep on filming guys.

Four kids out for some fun upset the wrong gang of cannibal greasers and are chased around a city at night while being picked off one by one. The script for Butcher boys was written by the writer of the original Texas chainsaw massacre with most of the ideas from that movie being regurgitated here only slightly tweaked. Several scenes are reused which dampens the impact as you've seen it before. It also borrows from other films most notably Judgement night.

In its favour Butcher boys does have a pleasingly nihilistic tone as once the film gets going nothing is explained. Who are these rockabilly cannibals? Why are the cops scared of them? Just what is that weird restaurant/gentlemans club they're running all about? But the tentative approach to the violence portrayed is at odds with the gonzo storytelling. Apart from two or three slightly graphic scenes the blood and gore is fairly minimal. This could be due to budget constraints. If I so I would have maybe saved the money spent on the constant nighttime aerial shots and spent that money on more prosthetic effects. A little more violence would have pushed this film up another notch on the crazy level making it that little bit more memorable. The nihilism does eventually reach it's apex in the finale when all hell breaks lose. Unfortunately this scene also turns a few things already set up in the film on its head. Making you question even further the lack of coherence.

I did find watching Butcher boys a fairly frustrating experience. I could definitely feel the opportunity for a good if not great movie in there somewhere. Visually it's very competent, it's well filmed and has a certain visual style all credit to the directors achieving this on a minimal budget. The sound and score are also strong. On the whole the performances are good with the odd exception. The problem lies mainly with the script, it borrows too much from other films, some of it could be classed as a knowing wink or nod to the writers previous work. Although had it been written by anyone else I think we'd be calling it plagiarism.

In the end I was left neither loving or hating the film hence the score. Maybe on a second viewing I'd like it more, but at the moment the only taste left in my mouth is vanilla.

It is very over the top crazy multiple things happening you never really form attachments to any of the characters but I really enjoyed this movie. I like quirky weird story lines and I love weird concepts in movies such as cannibalism (spell check) I did only watch this movie because I was bored and nothing else was on but if you're into weird nonsense movies this is one for you. After you will be asking what did I just watch. I do think this movie is a hit or miss for people. I am seeing people either really hated it or people really likes it. No middle base here. It ended on very weird terms I almost thought it wasn't over. Like all that and this is the end but again I did enjoy it and I don't think this movie gets the props that it deserves.

When you watch Butcher Boys, don't expect classy, artfully structured horror. Don't expect a movie that takes itself seriously. Really, don't expect anything except a movie that captures the manic spirit of the original cycle of Texas Chainsaw Massacre movies and why shouldn't it, as it is co-written and produced by Kim Henkel (co-writer of part 1 and and writer and director of part 4).

The premise is pretty simple. A group of well off young people get into an altercation with a pair of jock douche bags and in the ensuing chaos, they run across the titular gang of fine young cannibals. The villains are dangerous, psychotic young men with bizarre ides about class and proper diet.

That's about it as far as the story goes and, honestly, the first half of the movie is kind of weak. It's basically one long chase sequence that goes on longer than it has to. But just when I was about to lose interest altogether, things got crazy, much crazies than the average movie of this kind. I don't want to give anything away but suffice to say that by the end, you'll see a hulking, deformed cannibal bashing a war vet in a wheelchair in the face with a chunk of concrete he's swinging from a chain and that's not the wildest, weirdest part of the finale!

The camera work is okay, the acting is of mixed quality, the score is great, the script is thin, the gore effects solid, and generally the quality is all over the place. Many people will hate Butcher Boys. There's just no way a movie this strange can be to everyone's taste. However, if you're a fan of weird, wild cinema, Butcher Boys is a must.