Campfire Tales

This is a gem of a movie I discovered by accident. It is a nice anthology horror film which contains four stories rolled into one. There is graphic sex which is a little distracting, though. If you like this one you should check out "After Midnight".

Definitely not only for urban legend aficionados, Campfire Tales is an often scary and always fun ride through several popular stories. It is also a film that exceeded the (low) expectations I had. A horror film I had never heard or read about, a straight-to-video release (granted, the latter often presents us with a pleasant surprise, but with horror films nowadays it can be all or nothing), a cast of mostly unknowns... well, I'll leave the math to you.

The film proves to be an entertaining, suspenseful and overall very enjoyable experience. The four stories are well-paced and satisfying. The only one I felt was a little weaker was "The Locket", for the simple reason that it offers almost no explanation for its plot or the characters' actions; however, I still loved the tale, its atmosphere and ending. My favorite one was the third story, "People Can Lick Too" - the suspense in it is not only palpable, but also educational.

I found Campfire Tales to be one of those horror gems one discovers by chance, and then goes on recommending it to everyone.

7/10

The horror anthology movie has been a popular source of enjoyment for horror fans for a number of decades. As is pretty much always the case, the quality of each segment of the films varies - and this always will be the case. Case in point Campfire Tales.

Something of a little treat for those inclined, this offers up four main stories and a wraparound device which involves four teenagers telling the tales around a campfire after their car has crashed. In my own anthology experiences, the main stories have tended to improve in quality as each story plays out, Campfire Tales is different, it opens weakly - has two great stories in the middle - and then closes on a damp boring squib. leading into the big - if unsurprising - reveal at films end.

The poster for the film puts Amy Smart and James Marsden up at the front, which is a bum steer given that their screen time is not massive. Their story, "The Hook", opens the film and it's poor, devoid of scares and tension, and it obviously gears itself up for a chilling reveal but it ends up more funny (even baffling) than creepy.

"The Honeymoon" is up next and things significantly improve. Based on one of the most famous of urban legends, this finds a young couple of honeymooners stranded out in the woods when their camper van runs out of petrol. Choices are made, menacing terror begins, which all leads to a genuinely shocking finale.

Next up is "People Can Lick Too", which finds a young girl home alone and stalked by a paedophile she met on line. The whole episode has a sinister eeriness to it, with some reveals sending chills down the spine. The ending is heart stopping and blood curdling.

The last segment is "The Locket", which is well acted but ultimately more wistful and ethereal than anything scary or unnerving. Though the denouement is sure to appeal to many. Nice musical score here as well. And on to the reveal, straight out of The Twilight Zone and from any number of films of the same ilk. Great fun even if not all the stories knock it out of the park. 7.5/10

Sporting surprisingly high production values and a cast full of familiar faces, the horror anthology "Campfire Tales" will keep genre fans mildly amused.

Why only mildly amused? Well, the cast isn't the only familiar thing about this movie. Most eek freaks have already heard variations of the film's stories around campfires of their own. To wit, the opening segment (starring James Marsden and Amy Smart) is a quick retread of "The Hook" urban legend.

The three main tales, told by a group of teenagers (including Christine Taylor and Christopher Masterson) get progressively better. Ron Livingston turns up in an acceptable bit about terrorized honeymooners, followed by a rather creepy cautionary tale of an Internet predator. Finally, the always effectual Glenn Quinn plays a stranded biker who falls for a mute, mysterious girl (Jacinda Barrett) in the film's best segment.

Of course, it's those storytelling kids who suffer the nastiest twist of all.

The film's end title music, a slightly retooled version of "The Monster Mash" is weirdly fitting. Though entertaining, "Campfire Tales" is nothing new.

The Honeymoon.

The first segment is based on a different version of The Hook. It's somewhat similar to the urban legend, with a couple going to an isolated area with an unknown killer lurking around. One thing they added is a random local man who appears and tells them a creepy short story that gives off an unsettling vibe. The segment does a good job build up the tension to it and is somewhat suspenseful. The scene with the killer is terrorizing. Valerie is creepy, but the noises it makes are pretty stupid. The ending of the segment is similar to the urban legend. Overall, it's a decent one to start off with.

People Can Lick Too.

The second segment is somewhat similar to the urban legend itself. It goes through a decent pace and is built up pretty well. The scene with the chat room is disturbing because it revealed that the girl whom Amanda is talking to is an online predator posing as a young girl. Unfortunately, the two characters in the segment both sisters aren't that likable at all because both of them are bratty characters. The segment has pretty good tension with the predator stalking Amanda in the bushes, entering her house, and the garage scene. The ending is really similar to the urban legend itself. Overall, just like the previous segment, this is a decent one.

The Locket.

I don't know what urban legend this segment is based on, but it's about a young man who enters a farmhouse with a mute woman who lives there. Just like the previous segment, this one is built up nicely, and it is interesting to watch this. I think the character enters a place that is a time loop with an incident that repeats over and over again. It does build tension to it and is chilling on how it's executed. The ending itself is strange but interesting on the twist of it. Overall, another good segment.