Shredder

'Shredder' is a fun throwback to cheesy 80's slasher flicks with a twisted sense of humour, some decent gore effects and an awesome icy setting with the abandoned ski lodge and the gorgeous mountain slopes which gives off an eerie sense of isolation. This is definitely one of the better straight to DVD slasher movies from the time period in the wake of 'Scream' and sure it was never gonna hit the heights of some of the other self-aware counterparts, but it's still a good time.

The plot - A group of friend's head to a remote and abandoned ski resort on Mount Rocky Summit for a weekend of partying and snowboarding. Unaware that the place has a terrible history where a little girl died. A mysterious killer dressed in a black ski outfit starts enforcing the resort rules by killing off the group one by one, could this be connected to the previous tragedy?

I first saw this back in 2003 when it came out and even back then it felt like it was from the 90's, but I didn't care as I actually enjoyed it, sure its not perfect and there are a few things that holds it back slightly such as the clunky editing, the flat cinematography and the disappointing mystery element, but the movie does have a cool concept and setting which harks back to other slasher flicks with an icy setting such as 'Iced' & 'Satan's Blade', but this is far better than those two movies ever could be.

I also really liked the cast they were all likeable in their own unique ways Cole (Scott Weinger) made for a decent male lead, Kimberley (Lindsey McKeon) played the vindictive rich bitch perfectly, Pike (Juleah Weikel) was charming and likeable in her role, Billy O (Skyler) was a little annoying and Brad Hawkins (Christope) was hilariously bad, but was still an interesting addition to the group.

Overall 'Shredder' is underrated for sure with some fun effective scenes and it does border on parody at times, yet thankfully doesn't go all the way and okay it may be a bit sloppy and the whodunnit element is a total letdown, but the movie is entertaining and cheesy as hell and deserves more love.

Admittedly, this is not a classic horror flick but it is enjoyable nonetheless. The action takes place at an abandoned ski lodge - there is a killer stalking the snowboarders, known as 'shredders'. The teen characters (predictably, they look older!) are typical clichés of horror movies. There is a surprising amount of gore and you root for the 'good' characters. I liked the wintry setting, there are some good stunts and the whole movie is a guilty pleasure.

Some of the continuity is off in this, and some of the effects suck, like the scene at the end, but this is a fantastic movie. I kind of kept expecting Aladdin to pop up, because the main guy did his voice, but it was great. I like that carnage and it didn't really seem as slow as everyone made it seem. Surprisingly good amount of gore, and sleaze. The story is a little thin, and a little weird but easy to follow.

An annoying bunch of 20 somethings go to spend a weekend at an abandoned ski resort. They plan to go "shredding" (snow boarding) and whoop it up. All the stereotypes are in place: the nice girl; his girlfriend; the female slut; the maybe lesbian; the crazy "funny" guy; the constantly stoned guy and the mysterious European guy they pick up along the way. Also the "funny" crazy guy is constantly videotaping everything and we get extremely annoying, jarring cuts to his footage. This has quickly become a cliché since "The Blair Witch Project". Can we put it to rest now? It also seems the resort was the site of an unsolved murder...and there are rumors that the killer is still around...

It all starts out great with a bloody, gruesome murder...then falls apart quick. All the characters are annoying with the girls constantly prancing around in their underwear and being used (and filmed) as sex objects. Some people have complained that there wasn't enough female nudity in this film. Well...you know what? Not EVERYBODY wants female nudity in a horror film! As a gay man I find it boring and pointless. This film deserves credit for not having too much. And they do have hunky handsome Brad Hawkins shirtless a lot! That's a good thing. Also we have to wait 40 minutes in till the next murder. There's also a really stupid final revelation at the end and I love how a dead person mysteriously is alive at the end! On the good side: the acting isn't bad. That's surprising in a film like this. The best acting comes from Hawkins and Juleah Weikes. The only bad performance is from Scott Weinger. It's not entirely his fault...he's given little to work with but he does try. And there are a few very amusing lines. At one point Cole (Weinger) is constantly accusing one person of being the murderer. When they find that person dead he say's "All right--it's not him. Let's get out of here!" Also when a woman finds some dead bodies in the basement she goes screaming upstairs. Pike (Weikes) confronts her saying, "For future reference, the next time we're stalked by a serial killer do NOT go into the basement." Also the murders are VERY violent and incredibly bloody (I mean this as a good thing). The film also really picks up speed and the final half hour is good, fast and violent. The film has high production values (for a direct to video feature). It has some nice direction during the shredding episodes and the cinematography is nice, clear and crisp.

A lot of people have blasted this film but...come on! It's a direct to video horror film! What were they expecting? "Gone With the Wind?" It's a fairly good, fast horror flick. Worth a rental but don't go out of your way to see it.

A group of 'teens' go up to the mountains to go boarding. But someone doesn't like that they're there illegally, trespassing on private property, and breaking the safety rules to boot. So they're stalked and killed one by one. The intentional humor falls flat, yet luckily the unintentional humor saves this film from being totally unwatchable, but only barely. The 'teens' are horrible actors and whiny people and their death scenes are a hoot. Would I ever watch it again? Nope, but I had fun seeing it the first time, well perhaps not fun, but I wasn't hating my life. The beer helped. What din't help was the cardinal sin of Slasher films: showing a shower scene with NO nudity.

Eye Candy: Holly Towne as Robyn shows her mosquito bites

My Grade: D+