Pillow Party Massacre

After meeting up with old friends, a group of girls on a getaway trip to reminiscence at a remote house in the woods to get together end up finding their trip ruined by the remnants of a prank they committed when they were younger that left a person dead and must now find a way to stop the vicious killer.

This was a pretty solid and enjoyable throwback slasher effort. One of the better features of this one is the rather fun setup that serves as a fine inspiration to set everything in motion. Featuring the expected prank and the aftermath that serves as the inspiration to start a revenge rampage on the ones responsible for what went down, the resulting aftermath of which takes place when they get together years later being unoriginal but perfectly suited to this kind of throwback style. That also goes along rather nicely with the rest of the setup involving the girls trying to get over their issues while meeting up which generates a sense of strain and tension amongst the group. None of this is, again, all that clever or unique and tends to allow it to fall victim to plenty of cliched moments or scenarios that arise because it's following this kind of structure but there's still enough going on here to serve as worthwhile for the type of film this is presented as. This gives the film quite a lot to like in terms of being a straightforward slasher once the killer arrives. Given a great mask and a solid disguise, this one comes off quite nicely in that regard as the types of attacks that emerge here aren't that bad including the first attack on the police officers or the confrontations with the boyfriends who are clearly there to enhance the body count. Turning to the girls and stalking them through the house, the fact that they're aware of the killer from the start with him appearing to the group as a whole and causing some solid chases throughout gets quite fun with the interactions involving him taking out a few of them in obscure locations around the house. As these scenes not only give off the kind of low-budget slasher thrills which are necessary for this type of feature but also offer a nice frenetic energy in the best part of the film, these all come together to give everything quite a lot to like about it. There are some minor drawbacks to be had with this one. One of the few minor issues is the somewhat staggered pacing that takes quite a while to get going. Since it's running through some familiar territory involving the prank and its outcome as well as getting the friends back together at the house which includes not only the journey there but also the various scenes of them sitting around hanging out about what happened that the kills are instead pushed back to the last half of the film. While it's great to get a sense of their relationship with each other in stuff like their trip to the store where they encounter the homeless guy, their slow-motion pillow fight or the arrival of a boyfriend, these scenes end up dragging everything out to having most of the action take place in the last half-hour so it can feel like a struggle to get going. Combined with that aforementioned familiarity and a general sense of obeying genre conventions, these are the main drawbacks in store for this one.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language, Graphic Violence, Brief Nudity, and mild drug use.

I enjoy the slasher sub genre more than any other, having been there in the golden age. As a result I'm always looking for new "throwback" additions.

Most fail because they try to do something new or put a fresh twist on things. That's now how it's done. The key is knowing that the "formula" works and following that formula with your own new and unique story.

This young filmmaker did a great job following the formula. The story works and he pieced it together nicely. It is a well done by the book slasher. A nice watch for the OG fans of the sub genre.

Things for this filmmaker to look at to improve in his next foray in the slasher arena:

Likeable characters: Outside of Jax Kellington's "Alana" all of the female characters were unlikeable and the cliche "you wanted them to die" could be said. May have been the script, nay have been the performances. Either way, outside of Alana, the cast didn't work. Kellington could be another Quigley in the making, who knows.

Soundtrack: I will chalk up the lack of atmosphere and tension to a fairly weak soundtrack. Use of ambient sound and synth tracks to brood and build tension would have helped tremendously. Similar to Carpenter's original mistake with Halloween.

Atmosphere: A little less daylight, a bit more dusk and night time. The daytime shots were ok but needed to contain more fun interaction and some light hearted humor tossed in as opposed to the girls bitching and moaning about everything that we got. Also, the killer's "costume" was on point but the 21st century smiley mask can be 86'd. It's too "Scream"(y) and not scary.

To the filmmaker, great job on a throwback slasher. You succeeded where many have failed. Better casting, outside of Kellington, and a more intense, suspenseful soundtrack would go a long way. Keep following the path you're on !

When a tight knit group of high school kids pull a prank on one of their friends...it causes the target of the prank to snap, and murder the boy who set her up.

Fast forward two years later, and we have this same group reconnecting at a cabin in the woods.

Where they start being hunted by a not-so mysterious killer.

Because, on top the plot being horribly constructed.

What's supposed to be the "twist" at the end...is just way too predictable.

With the bulk of the film being almost entirely irrelevant to the conclusion.

The whole movie is just loathesomely bad, on practically every front.

And is barely able to hold your attention.

The fact that not a whole lot happens in the run-up to the underwhelming finale...just renders the whole thing to be overtly boring.

The pillow fight (seemingly for which the film is named) is inexplicably forced into the story; characters are thrown in, simply for the sake of dying (and upping the kill count); while plot elements are introduced, and just left as loose ends.

Also...if you think about it...the killer could only ever be one of two people.

And they make the one one option so obvious, that you just reject even considering it as being reasonable.

So, by process of elimination, it's really not that hard to sus out who the killer is, pretty much straight from the get-go.

Thus, the whole thing is just way too predictable, in it's blatant (yet failed) attempt to be unpredictable.

Not to mention, the whole thing is poorly written, poorly acted, and poorly constructed.

With no attention to detail.

And a finale so underwhelming, it's almost funny.

But it's not.

And the kills suck.

Rendering the whole thing borderline unwatchable.

It's only redeeming value, whatsoever, is quite literally, it's rad post punk soundtrack.

So do yourself a favour and pass this one by.

It's just not worth the time wasted.

1.5 out of 10.

Within seconds, and I do mean seconds, I absolutely fell in love with Pillow Party Massacre. The neon titles; the retro music; the use of slow motion; it's all there as our cast is assembled at a High School dance in which an April Fool's Day prank goes wild. The music stops only momentarily as the girls gathered get their drink on and then - BOOM! - the party is momentarily abandoned to go make out in a mausoleum of dirty socks.

Pillow Party Massacre, directed by indie filmmaker Calvin, is a delightful homage to the 1980s slasher genre with a modern twist. It successfully marries nostalgia with contemporary storytelling, offering a thrilling and hilarious ride that keeps you hooked from start to finish.

The film kicks off with an unmistakable '80s vibe, evident from the very first frame. The neon titles, synth-heavy soundtrack, and an array of vintage fashion choices transport you back in time.

Get your pillows ready and Parrrrrtaaay!

Thee storyline really made it for me. Being a huge fan of horror films, I might come off as a little biased, but in a nutshell, this film takes the horror genre to the next level and on the right path not relying on cheesy jump scares And quick camera pops this movie allows you to use your imagination and keeps you glued to the seat the entire time almost putting you in a hypnotic state. I definitely recommend this film because it's new it's storyline is creative and the finished product is meaningful that deserves to get two thumbs up. It's definitely one of those films where you're just kind of hanging out at the house with your partner enjoying the night. It's almost a mood setting movie!