A skeleton film crew travels to a woodsy lodge in rural Pennsylvania to film a low-budget horror film. Said crew includes easygoing cinematographer / special effects man Dom (Joseph Pilato, the original "Day of the Dead"), who is none too pleased to learn about the little side project that dictatorial director Lacey (John Harrison, composer for "Creepshow" and director of "Tales from the Darkside: The Movie") has going on.
Although scripted (by director Dusty Nelson, based on a novel by William H. Mooney), this likeable if modest indie genre flick has a loose, good-natured, improvisational feel to it *until* the final 21 minutes, when, as the saying goes, the excrement hits the fan, and Dom must run for his life. Some people may feel that the film is just a little *too* low-key, however, and find it boring. Personally, I found it reasonably interesting and entertaining, with typically solid effects work by Tom Savini, who also plays the key supporting role of the obnoxious Nicky. Nelson & company *do* have fun with the whole idea of "Where does 'reel world' end and 'real world' begin?".
The film is most noteworthy for the fact that, due to a major distribution problem, it never saw the light of day in either theaters *or* on home video. It finally got released on DVD in 2005, and now there is a Blu-ray release as well. It always is of some interest to finally see movies such as this that become "lost" for a long time. Genre buffs can also hardly fail to notice how many of the players are connected to George A. Romero and his filmography.
It's worth seeking out if you enjoy discovering more obscure films. At the very least, it's a decent little picture that didn't deserve its fate.
Six out of 10.
