Bloody Axe Wound

I've never seen a film that so nonchalantly asks you to simply accept the ridiculousness of its premise. It doesn't even try to explain the absurdity and implausibility of it all. There isn't even anyone filming these murders? I thought I was losing my mind. After about 20 minutes though I realised the only way to get any enjoyment out of the film was to simply sit back, accept it, and go along for the ride. Even then, it's touch and go whether you'll enjoy it.

The one thing the movie does well, and really its saving grace, is that it creates some likable characters. It's hard to make a young woman who murders innocents for profit into a pleasant character, but the movie finds a way. Also some of the side characters are quite well created. And so while the horror and story may not always be working for you, at least you can fall back on that.

Some of the gore was quite effective and it's a nice and short film. It knows not to outstay its welcome. It's not all bad, but it certainly does require some effort on the audience's part. A generous 5/10.

I watch tons of horrible movies. I'm always open to independent and low-budget movies (although the huge influx from streaming services has made me hesitant). Bloody Axe Wound could have been just another one of those bad low-budget movies that I would rate low and immediately forget about.

The problem is, it has such a cool concept for the premise and an interesting spin on the subgenre. The premise of them actually doing murders so they could make movies about it is pretty awesome. And the idea of a female slasher villain sounds highly intriguing.

That's why I'm so disappointed in this. It could have been great. And I wish they saved this idea until they could get better funding, writers, directors, etc. If done right, this had the potential to be a movie I loved. Instead, I couldn't make it past the 26-minute mark.

(1 viewing, 1/14/2025)

Painfully awful movie with a totally misleading star rating. I am puzzled by this rating in fact. The '90s video rental store(necessary for the storyline it appears) precede the age of 99 percent of the actors within the film. I hear there is some nostalgia for this decade lately but it is certainly overshadowed by the hodgepodge of a storyline and/or screenplay. We have not walked out of a theater in many years but this one has surely earned the distinction.

The dad's makeup and the quality werewolf mask alone do not make a movie. The high school cast must also have been responsible for the ratings it received. Gen Z does it again it appears.

Save your money and watch In a Violent Nature for a significantly better homage to slasher movies

This movie's failings are numerous but above all it was boring and lame, and just doesn't keep up with the golden age of horror we have going with released such as Terrifier, Oddity, Skinamarink, Late Night with the Devil etc..

• corny plot trying to explore empathy and friendship at the expense of creating a compelling horror movie with excitement. Completely fails to capture the magic of the genre it makes meta commentary on
• no good kills, so tame and afraid to push any boundaries
• humor is completely random and is just thrown in gags (not in the good crazy way like terrifier)
• massive pacing issues. First 10 mins are interesting and then the rest of the movie is a hallmark drama

Please skip, do not encourage shudder to continue making these lame stream milquetoast releases.

Bloody Axe Wound initially comes across as another subversively interesting slasher that aims to have fun with the rules of the sub-genre, but eventually becomes a wasted idea executed in a fun enough way to keep it watchable.

Acting is decent from the Bladecuts, with Billy Burke being an easy highlight of the movie as he handles the humour and the intensity to an impressively balanced degree as the fatherly killer Roger Bladecut. Moreover, Sari Arambulo is really fitting in the lead role of Abbie Bladecut; she is able to convey the struggles and aspirations to follow in her father's footsteps in a straight-faced and very comical way that is still funny but never comes across as silly or overacting. On a more technical note, the cinematography, lighting, and practical gore effects are all very well done. And the story itself starts out pretty strong, with an interestingly funny set up, and the balancing between the jokes and the killings is done to an effective degree.

However, that is also where it seems to be a point of struggle for the film. It can't consistently maintain its aforementioned balance, where the second act very much becomes a high school romance story that very nearly hijacks the main premise several times. The third act, in an attempt the balance the scales again, instead tips them entirely to being a straight up generic slasher flick with a strange and underwhelmingly unrewarding ending.

But it's biggest weakness is by far the world building, with several aspects and plot mechanisms left either unexplored or unexplained. Furthermore, the script can never decide how it works, and it leaves the audience with an utterly baffled sense of confusion as to how particular mechanisms drive the narrative.

Overall, it is funny enough to keep you entertained, but not interesting enough to stick with you and leave any kind of lasting impression.