Camping del terrore

Well, Body Count is as average a slasher flick as it gets. It's not a bad movie (if you like 80's slashers) but in no way is it good. The movie takes place out in a forest campground (sound familiar) where two teens are killed. Skip about 15 years later. A group of kids (teens or college kids?) decide to take a camping trip and they pick up a hitchhiker on the way who just got out of the service. He tells them they can stay at his place with his parents. His parents place just happens to be in the same forest that those murders took place in. When they all get there they are given a hole hearted welcome from service boys father (David Hess). It turns out that David Hess is a little on the angry side and is setting up traps all over the forest for a local legend called "The Shaman". Can you guess what happens with the rest of the movie? If not, go back and watch Friday the 13th.

As stupid as this movie is, it is still stand-able. The main problems are the characters are so cliché and the storyline has been done a million times. Ruggero Deodato directed this movie (Cannibal Holocaust, Jungle Holocaust) and it is hard to tell whether he was making this movie cliché on purpose or whether he was actually trying to make something original. The gore isn't even that great in the movie except for may be three or four scenes.

Nonetheless, great score by Claudio Simonetti and look for David Hess, Charles Napier and Ivan Rassimov. They all do fairly decent parts in the movie. 5/10

I was lucky enough to find a totally uncut coverless copy of this enjoyable killer in the woods flick from a video-search agency on the Internet. Titled as 'The Eleventh Commandment' (what a brilliant name!), it included the 14 seconds of gore that were unfairly snipped from the runtime by the spoilsports over at the BBFC for the eighties UK 'Bodycount' print. The cuts were not waived for the recent budget disc release, although it would've easily passed through untouched, if Hollywood DVD had even bothered to submit the full version. Dapper Italian horror craftsman Ruggero Deodato directed it, but one could easily be fooled into believing that this was an all-American movie. Unlike Michele Soavi's similar Stage fright, which was filmed somewhere in Italy - trying to convince us it was the States, this was shot on location in the wilderness of Colorado with a mixed Italian-American cast. Deodato's previous claims to fame prior to this, were his controversial video-nasties from the early eighties - Cannibal Holocaust and The House on the edge of the Park. He has managed to work steadily throughout the years that followed, sticking mainly to television or genre pieces like Phantom of Death and The Washing Machine. He claims that soon he wishes to make a sequel to his Cannibal classic, which I for one would be interested in seeing. The Eleventh Commandment is little more than a shameless dupe of the Friday the 13th franchise, but succeeds mainly because of the director's flare for stylish horror film-making and a good sense of cheesy frolics.

It commences with quick cutting shots of desolate streets, which was reminiscent of Carpenter's closing for Halloween. Next we skip to a school basketball court where two teams are busy slugging it out under the watchful eye of the team doctor. His daughter, Rose, informs him that she's going to the campground with her boyfriend, Tom. We're pretty sure that they won't be returning when he warns her that she's got to be back before dark because '- those woods are dangerous!' After they've discussed their plans for a wedding (aaah, teenage angst!), Rose somewhat bizarrely, goes for a wander through the forest on her lonesome. She conveniently forgets her father's fateful warning, which makes her gory demise as imminent as the appearance of a masked killer with a handy blade. On her travels, she notices a cop's car abandoned by the roadside and walks on over to take a look at why it's been left so suspiciously parked. Hearing a strange sound from within the bushes, she heads over to investigate and discovers the devious glowing eyes of The Shaman staring back at her. (Lifted craftily from Suspira!) Local legend has it that The Shaman is a murderous demon, which was summoned by the ancient Indians to watch over the burial ground of their clan after they passed on over to the spirit world. He can't be too happy, because nowadays it's become a campsite reserved for randy teenagers, and we all know what psycho-killers think about those kinds of social gatherings, don't we!

Instead of sprinting for her life, the bushy haired female decides that it would be safer to climb in the car right in front of the killer (doh!). She soon changes her mind when a large knife slashes through the seat and just misses giving her a cack-handed heart bypass. The Shaman pursues her into the woodland, before she meets her maker whilst unwisely hiding in a tree-trunk. Tom hears the screams of his girlfriend and heads off into the forest looking for her, whilst at the same time, calling out things like, 'Rose are you putting me on?' (Putting you on what may I ask?). After a decidedly smart stunt from the maniac (more on that later), he eventually ends up with a blade through the larynx. Before the screen fades, we see that the murders were watched by a little Harry Potter look-alike who was pugged up in the trees holding a grubby teddy bear.

Fifteen years later, we meet a troupe of troublesome youngsters in a RV that are looking for somewhere to camp down for a while and commit the cardinal slasher sin of fun-fuelled debauchery. On their travels they bump into Ben (the sprogg from earlier) who's on leave from the army and returning home to his parents at the campground. He hitches a ride from the posse, and as return for the favour, he allows them to set up their camp in the woodland surrounding his home. Of course, this is a woefully bad move, because conveniently enough, Ben isn't the only ex-local to feel homesick enough to make a returning visit. Yes you guessed it, The Shaman has turned up for the party, with his friends: Mr. Axe, Mr. Butcher's knife and Mr. Hokey gore effects man! Let the debauchery begin…

Deodato hired a supremely interesting ensemble of B-movie stars for this cheesy little rarity. Struggling faces included his old buddy David Hess - who had worked with him previously, John Steiner, Bruce Penhall, Mimsy Farmer and everyone's favourite tough as nails Southerner, Charles Napier. OK, so the youngsters were mostly desperate for a drama teacher, but hey, did I mention Charles Napier! The slaughter material is made up of all the typical characteristics that don't miss out any of the conventional ingredients. They're all mind-bogglingly dumb and the girls must be really dirty (not like that) too, because they seem to spend most of their screen time naked in the shower - or naked somewhere else! When they're not bathing in the nod or throwing buckets of water over each other whilst smiling profusely, they're being nastily dispatched by the old Indian shaman. This psycho-killer has had a right result with these victims however, because inexplicably enough they don't seem to notice when their numbers start to suspiciously dwindle. Even if they do come across mysterious occurrences, like the corpses of their friends stacked neatly in a corner, they're usually extremely lacking in the will to escape a gruesome fate anyway. At one point, a girl finds her boyfriend in a bloody mess on the floor and instead of escaping the wraith of her assailant, she proceeds to go and lie down on the nearest bed as if to say, 'I'm ready when you are Mr. Killer!' One guy meets his death after being 'scared' at the top of a mountain by the demon, who was probably only out for a stroll to buy a pack of fags and a paper. Judging by his snazzy loafers, he's a regular visitor to the local mall, which is an amazing accomplishment for a 'demon', don't ya think? The teen falls backward off the cliff, but must have visited a barber in-between loosing his grip and hitting the floor, because the body that rolls down the hill after the impact - has completely different coloured hair from the one that climbed up. (Was it that hard to find a blonde wig for the stunt 'double'?) His girlfriend, whom was waiting below, witnesses the incident but not what caused it. Does she go and check if her boyfriend's still alive or go and get some help for the poor old fella? Of course not, instead she decides to run to the bathhouse and – wait for it – begins taking off her clothes? Just what was it about that bathhouse and stripping?

Good IL' Mr. Nut-nut is probably the most prepared killer in the history of slasher movies. When he kills Rose at the beginning (the stunt that I said I'd come back to earlier), he manages to materialise a wig from out of nowhere that exactly matches the now defunct victim's hair. He then climbs inside the tree-trunk in record breaking time and manages to convince Tom that he's actually his girlfriend, so that he can re-align his Adam's apple. He's not only a vicious maniac; he's also a bloody genius! He should've used that impressive trick to conjure up a suitable hair piece for the stuntman that I told you about in the paragraph above, which would've helped the continuity no end. While we're talking about geniuses, Rose's father (the team doctor) was another probable candidate for the head of Mensa. He manages to describe word for word the murder of two teens from years earlier, without being anywhere near to the location at the time that they happened. Perhaps even stranger is the fact that the Sheriff that he tells his story too doesn't find his knowledge of the incident the slightest bit suspicious. So we've got a Doctor that must be a part-time clairvoyant, a cross-dressing killer that can switch his guise as quick as a chameleon and a rock-climber that can bleach his hair at the drop of a hat! Now no one can deny that these are elements that don't pop up regularly in your more common-a-garden two-a-penny slasher movies!

The gore scenes that were missing from the UK print are fun, but hardly nightmare inducing. There's certainly nothing to rival the 'sick bag at the ready stuff' that Cannibal Holocaust delivered so freely. One character has his fingers lopped off with an axe, but as I said, nothing was really that explicit. I guess that I've made The Eleventh Commandment sound pretty stupid, but to be honest, it's actually fairly engaging. Some of the flowing photography was brilliant as victims ran through the woods from the killer's pursuit and there's a fairly outlandish nightmare sequence that's quite impressive. Some of the murders manage to build a nice slice of suspense, and the night scenes utilize a competent use of smoke machines and an instantly recognisable score. Deodato even chucks in a twist that you may not see coming first time around, unless you've witnessed as many of these things as I have. In the beginning, each victim finds a grubby teddy bear somewhere before they're slaughtered. It was a neat touch that mysteriously disappeared halfway through the movie? It's a shame he never made more of the idea, because we don't even learn the toy's significance, and I myself am a great fan of those creepy little elements that help add a child's-like nightmare atmosphere to a horror film. You know - the use of dollies, mannequins or clowns - especially creepy clowns!

To be honest, this is a lot better than most of the Friday rip-offs that were made circa 1985, and deserves to be uncovered by those searching for a fairly enjoyable camp slaughter-thon. It manages to avoid feeling tired, despite its limitations, and there are tonnes of chuckles to be had at the silly shenanigans of the brash youngsters. I recommend The Eleventh Commandment as an entertaining alternative to fans that have seen Jason's Hockey mask one too many times, but are still wrapped up in their love for backwoods slashers. It doesn't break new ground or even make anything outstanding from the old, but it pushes the right buttons for just what you'd expect to find from a movie of its ilk. This was one of the first slasher movies I ever came across post-Halloween, and I was intrigued by the glaring tagline, which caught my teenage eye like a viewing of one of Pamela and Tommy's home movies. In the tradition of Halloween and Friday the 13th - now the woods are alive with the sounds of screaming… Memories, memories

What a relief to find out that Ruggero Deodato is a fallible human being after all. His teen slasher BODY COUNT is the perfect pill for anyone who might make the mistake of finding him to be maybe more than human. I've read comments from people saying he is a god, a genius, a bastard, and Satan, and my advice to any/all of those who feel that way is to watch this film.

It could have been made by anybody, with only the remarkable supporting cast of Italian cult movie favorites as the selling point: David Hess, Mimsey Farmer, Charles Napier, Ivan Rassimov, John Steiner -- these are heavyweight names, so what are they doing in a disposable, formulaic and ultimately silly teen slasher movie? The answer is making a living, which is exactly what Deodato was doing as well. I would imagine he was under contract to direct a movie that would have to sell and this was what he chose to do. Anyone who has seen any three slasher horror thrillers made since 1981 or so will have a fairly easy time figuring out what is going to happen next, and if like me you've developed a taste for slightly offbeat, lower budgeted examples of the form this will prove to be somewhat more interesting than most.

Besides it's cast the best thing the film has going for it is the use of locations -- one commenter has already identified much of it as Colorado, which may be the case but certain locations will be very, very familiar to anyone who has seen a Spaghetti Western or two. I recognized a waterfall location from THE GRAND DUEL, a field of boulders from DAYS OF VIOLENCE and some patches of woods from WHITE COMANCHE, so it looks like maybe they either filmed part of this in Spain or France in addition to Colorado and edited it all together to look like a seamless shoot.

Who knows. It's wonderful to see an actor like John Steiner with that hollow, unemotional deadpan alongside Ivan Rassimov scowling at a bunch of college nitwits who are about to be chopped to bits. Deodato does deliver some good gore sequences during the butchery and the film is replete with the nudity the genre calls for, but honestly it could have been directed by just about anyone with a feel for shot composition, has none of the crackling immediacy or controversial nature of CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST, and serves as a workmanlike effort by a director who has been hailed as some sort of a demigod or agent of the Devil, depending on your sentiment.

Nope, he's just a man, and as capable as anyone of making a routine, paint by the numbers movie that is of interest because he was the one that made it. How refreshingly stupid!

6/10

(**1/2 out of *****) For his first venture into straight slasher territory, Deodato (famous for the notorious gross-out classic "Cannibal Holocaust") pulls together an interesting, international cast of B-movie/genre film veterans, including David Hess ("Last House on the Left" and Deodato's "The House on the Edge of the Park"), Mimsy Farmer (Dario Argento's "Four Flies on Grey Velvet"), Ivan Rassimov (from Deodato's other cannibal `epic' "Jungle Holocaust"), John Steiner(Argento's "Tenebre" and Deodato's "Cut and Run") and Charles Napier (one of Hannibal's unfortunate guards in "Silence of the Lambs"). With Deodato directing and this unique cast (not to mention Claudio Simonetti of Italian group Goblin providing the soundtrack), I expected -- well, I don't exactly know what I expected, but what I got was a so-so thriller with some interesting ideas, a bit more plot than usual, and a few suspenseful chase and murder sequences here and there, but not a whole lot else. Hess and Farmer play a dysfunctional married couple who own a campground that was closed down after two kids were murdered by an `Indian shaman' killer. Well, it's fifteen years later, and the killings are starting all over again, and, coincidentally, an RV full of dumb teenagers (including the couple's traumatized son) just happens to show up for the onslaught. There's your typical horny stud who wants to screw all the girls, your typical prankster clown who you'd like to see get offed after about three minutes, your typical nympho babes who take showers every five or ten minutes, and the hit list goes on. Hess's character, while still decidedly mean and ugly, is at least not quite as despicable as the sadistic characters he played in the two afore-mentioned House movies. Deodato tries to make the identity of the killer a surprise, but it's still pretty much a no-brainer. Thanks to the "Friday the 13th" franchise, these killer-in-the-woods movies are the most prolific of the slasher genre.

HIGHLIGHT: Hess's and Farmer's son has a totally WHACKED-OUT dream with sexy severed legs, strangling tentacles, constricting nets -- it reminded me of some of the frat parties I went to in college.

I'm a fan of backwoods slasher films such as The Forest and Don't Go In The Woods, so had to see this one. And since it was done by the same director as Cannibal Holocaust I was of course expecting something brutal and bloody. Well, it wasn't that bloody. But it was a fairly decent slasher. The focus is more on atmosphere than anything else, and there are some rather creepy moments especially in the old house in the woods. There are some good death scenes too, such as when one girl is looking in the mirror and suddenly a hand breaks through and kills her. There is quite a high body count (as the title would suggest) but sadly the deaths are just not gory or bloody enough. There's also the mystery of who the killer is...I never saw it coming.

Watch this if you're a fan of backwoods slashers or a general slasher fan, but don't expect anything special.