The Laughing Mask

Most fans watching this flick are very much like myself waiting for a brainless slasher type. Unfortunately we don't get one.

This is a thriller, Im not sure why the horror sites picked it up as a horror movie but its not at all. Some other reviews already went over it so Ill just make it simple the good and bad..

I watched this recently, was not at the event but was given the opportunity to watch it and was both disappointed and surprised at the same time..

Disappointed because even though the movie is made in FL and we have a ton of wannabe filmmakers here dishing out all kinds of garbage, I had high hopes for this and was not happy with the lack of blood. The kills are solid and atmosphere was creepy, but there was not enough blood to make me happy..

Surprised because although it wasn't a good horror film, was a great police thriller. There was the main plot and the subplot running at the same time, a cool killer and a twist ending. The acting was there but clearly the low budget aspect of the film shows in the acting but it needs to be taken into consideration.

Cinematography was on point and I was given a link to watch this in full 4k. Although I don't have the TV or monitor to run it in full 4k it looked amazing to me, the colors very vibrant and the script was an old school revenge flick with a saw type twist.

I was surprised overall and even though I was upset it wasn't the horror movie I signed up for it definitely was worth the time.

Those of you who saw several posters and stories about The Laughing Mask within the last few years and like myself were expecting a horror film will be somewhat let down with this film. If you don't watch it till the end...

I was expecting pure unadulterated gore honestly when I first saw the shot of the dude with the Chaisaw I was like "YES"! Then I got to see this film recently and although my thirst for gore remained unquenched, I was surprised to see a very well put together thriller with horror tendencies.. And then I was hooked.

This is definitely not a slasher film, not a torture porn or gore fest. This is a thriller in the veins of "along came the spider" and others starring serial killers. The plot revolves around the murder we first witness in the beginning of the flick. Jaycee Johnson was murdered in cold blood by this laughing maniac and we pick up 6 months later with her husband Jake (played really well by John Hardy) who conjures up a plan to have The Laughing Mask come after him in hopes to find his missing daughter..

There is definitely a cool subplot involving a gang of thugs called Rancors and a very interesting twist in the end, so if you're looking for a gore fest stay out, but if your'e looking for a cool thriller with horror tendencies, a good story and a kick ass killer I suggest this movie for sure.

Best things of the movie are the killer and the aesthetic. Ive seen other people mentioning, there are scenes in his lair or house that are VERY well done, really stylized and give a great sense of what the director was going for. Unfortunately those are sometimes sandwiched with wooden acting from John Hardy for example who seemed to be having a seizure in the final reveal for some reason. This is definitely a low budget feature with a lot of potential with a higher budget, especially for the main killer.

For example since this is on Tubi TV for free and they have 0 content that is original, throwing a little money on making a series based on this killer with some A talent actors even B involved would be freaking awesome. The weakest part of the movie really is what plagues every low budget feature, but they still managed to get a few strong performances from Rivers, Gabriel Lee and a few others.

Admittedly, it does start to drag in the beginning and is kinda cheesy and low budget at times... I almost gave up on it, but glad I stuck with it.

It picks up nicely and has a very solid end. The killer is the best part of the movie, for sure.

And while the acting many times does really leave something to be desired there are also several moments of good dialogue, and as I said I thought the killer for sure was well acted.

Perhaps the best thing about the movie is that there are several very funny moments but it doesn't stoop to like 'B' movie humor - it does keep a straight face (pardon the pun couldn't resist...)

Give it a shot - just remember you might have to stick it out for a little bit but worth it, IMO.

Caught it on Tubi, Im a low budget film freak, and I don't mean low budget like these 3 mil plus movies out there, I mean I like to see what people can do with near nothing, for me its the closest we get to real cinema. With that in mind, this is a perfect example of a full-feature film being done with whatever you have around you and turning out great. There is obviously no budget to speak of. The actors are all unknowns, and some only have this as their only film, Aguiar's strengths were the character itself, referenced in tons of other reviews here, its polished and a great killer. Using music to deliver the dialogues was a great touch and free music even better. The more technical aspects fail somewhat, sound is rough and ADR sounded spotty in several outside scenes but the cinematography is truly great with some really inspired kill scenes. Is it super polished? No, is the acting rough at parts? Yes but its the fun of low budget films. Give it a try!