Billy Club

Firstly I must say that I thought that this movie was excellent and makes me wonder why I didn't hear about this sooner than I did. For a start for an independent feature it looks so stylish and has excellent production values that it looks just like a big budget Hollywood feature. So for a start well done to the directors and writers Drew Rosas and Nick Sommer for making something that pleases horror/slasher fans such as me.

The plot itself isn't anything original but that doesn't matter as long as it's interesting and engaging enough for the viewer to keep interested all the way through. Here we get a group of old friends reuniting from their childhood days of being in a little league team, where their coach and some of their teammates were murdered by a boy named Billy who got sent to an insane asylum. But now somebody has been hunting down and killing the remaining members of that team, could it be Billy back for revenge, who knows.

To be honest I don't think that I've seen that many baseball themed slashers (the only one that comes to mind was 1998's "The Catcher") which I don't really remember all that well. But this comes as a really strong entry with a decent cast, namely from the 4 main leads were really strong and likable and I liked how the first half developed them, and then the 2nd half of the movie that's where things really take off, I really liked the homage scene where it showed the killer creating his weapon adding nails and a blade to his baseball bat, which was really cool and effective. Then of course the kills which were gory and well handled, and also left me wanting more and even the mystery surrounding the killer was again mind blowing and does keep the viewer guessing until the very end.

All in all "Billy Club" is a definite must see for any horror/slasher fans, it has a good story, engaging characters and gory kills which is basically everything you need and want in a movie of this genre.

Fifteen years after a gruesome triple homicide devastated their Little League baseball team, four friends reunite to commemorate their dead coach and fallen teammates. A mystery unfolds as the secrets from their past return to haunt them and a vengeful killer, hidden by an antique umpire's mask, returns to even the score.

I saw this film as part of the Oshkosh Horror Film Festival and was drawn to it by the fact it was filmed in Wisconsin and many of those involved were from Milwaukee. I knew nothing about it beyond that, and had no expectations. For the most part, I was quite pleased.

Being a fan of slashers, I love the whole plot of a past crime being avenged years later by a masked killer. And then you throw in the mystery of the killer himself -- is it the same guy as years ago? An imposter? Why now? This is always good.

Next, you throw in a good group of actors, some excellent direction and camera work, and plenty of humor. This is a winner any way you slice it. Of the two big Wisconsin films this year (the other being "Don't Go To The Reunion", which also featured Nick Sommer who wrote-directed-starred in this film) this was the one that really hit a home run. (I say that with all due respect to "Reunion", which is itself a fine movie with great kills and humor and was made by two wonderful gentlemen.)

My biggest critique would have to be the flashbacks. From a Q&A, I gathered that the "modern day" (1990s) footage was shot first and the flashbacks were spliced in later. I feel like some it slowed the pace down. The kid parts were alright, but the hospital scenes just seemed to drag a bit and did not add the psychological angle the filmmakers were looking for.

You should definitely see this, though. A few snags here and there do not detract from this being a slasher that bats over .500 in a subgenre that rarely hits .333, if you know what I mean. Nick Sommer is a man to watch out for. First "Blood Junkie" (available from Troma), then this... who knows what is next?

Impressively fair slasher.

Can someone tell me if this was inspired by another film with a similar plot?

There was another indie slasher that began with a group of cruel kids on a baseball field who teased another youngster. When the boy attempted to catch a fly ball hit out of the field, he was struck by a car. The movie (that looks similar to this one) is about these same cruel kids who are all grown up years later and are reunited at a bed and breakfast cabin and begin receiving strange threats from a mystery man who stalks them. Very scary and intensifying indie Thriller with a similar plot to "Billy Club".

The problem with this film is that it's scarce. I don't remember if it was part of a Horror Anthology or actual indie movie that possibly inspired Billy Club.

Can anyone remember this scarce film?

Not horrible and not good. And nowhere near great or bad enough to be trashy campy treasure. Some nice use of 1990's nostalgic microfilm and a CD jukebox. Back before the internet murdered everything and made most things available in your home and at your fingertips instantly. A funny pizza delivery scene killing with the wrong suspect being arrested by cops and fleeing away in his Bryan Cranston tighty whiteys. Kudos to the ATV go-pro hallucination scene that came out of left field and was a home run. Most of the kills were professional and impressive.

To harsh to call the filmmakers "wannabes" or fugazi because their heart was in the right place. But if I watch one more formulaic clichéd flashback than I will bash myself in the head with a baseball bat full of rusty nails.

Nothing real original a Graduation Day (1981) / Some Guy Who Kills People (2011) ripoff played out with a baseball theme. And a crazy baseball horror movie called Catcher (1998) seemed to inspire a few scenes as well. Just passing my opinion to fellow movie lovers to skip this one like a rock and get your jolly ranchers elsewhere. Time available to watch our beloved films is so precious.

Nobody likes to trash somebody's art. These guys obviously love movies. Fanboys love them so much we all dream of making one or two. But at the end of the day some of us were just born to watch them.

Trevor Layne Movies & Candy

The idea sounds idiotic. A killer dressed up in baseball catcher's gear? Killing people with a bat? C'mon! One may fully expect to hate every dumb minute of BILLY CLUB.

And yet...

Back in 1981, in a small town in Wisconsin, two little league baseball players and their coach are slaughtered by young Billy Haskins, who is arrested and sent to a mental institution.

Fifteen years later, someone dressed as a catcher is murdering people. Has Billy returned to... catch up?

Meanwhile, four former teammates gather at a remote cabin to celebrate the 15 year anniversary of the tragic event. Not-so surprisingly, they soon cross paths with the world's most homicidal catcher!

Mass carnage abounds.

Filled with sympathetic characters, humor, and retro-style, late 1970's-80's slasher ambiance, BILLY CLUB is a well-constructed, low-budget film that delivers the gushy goods!

BEST SCENE: a guy unknowingly eats about a pound of "magic" mushrooms, only to be chased through the now-psychedelic forest by the maniac!

Both harrowing and hilarious, the aforementioned scene illustrates the care that went into making this movie.

Highly rrecommended for the horror / slasher enthusiast...