Offerings

"Offerings" by Christopher Reynolds tells the story of mute serial killer John Radley who after killing nurse and escaping from mental asylum stalk and kill all those that tormented him when he was a kid.His bloody rampage is obviously Michael Myers influenced.John is no ordinary killer for example he killed and ate his own sadistic mother.He has only one friend from childhood:blonde girl named Gretchen."Offerings" is a blatant and unapologetic "Halloween" rip-off.Even its musical score clearly reminds John Carpenter's famous music.Black humor sprinkled death scenes are quite inventive but mostly goreless.Still fans of cheesy slasher movies will enjoy this low-budget horror.6 body parts out of 10.

I was on the crew. I worked special effects and mic placement. I was also "tall guy". This film was just an excuse to party. There was nothing serious about it. It was meant to be a bad spoof.And yes, Halloween similarities were discussed. There were a ton of people working on this thing just to have fun. Several crew members are in the classroom scene. I made sure I had something else to do that day. After it went to video, I got a small check. BTW, the director plays the doctor in the asylum.

There were 2 needles. The one that drew fluid wouldn't behave for a close up, so the camera didn't show the forehead. The chunky fluid came in from the top. The sparks on the fence were from a squib box I built. The exploding head shadow was a watermelon with a nose. A push rod gave it the extra splatter. My friend and I drove around all night looking for dead ducks. As the night went on, everything looked like a dead duck. When the sun came up, we just went to a farm and got some chickens. Luckily there was a dead duck at the pond for the shoot. I can't remember what was on the pizza. It was something strange from a meat department. I remember frying it up. I also made the dog food that got sampled.

Working and playing with that crew was one of the best times in my life.

Offerings is a good horror flick that is worth seeing! The film was put together nicely, and scary too! When you first watch Offerings, you notice that it relates to the Halloween film...right down to the story line and even the music. Even though this film practically ripped off the formula from Halloween (metal case escapes, goes to his hometown, seeks revenge), all-in-all, Offerings is a fun, yet cheesy film filled with cheesy killings.

--If you have friends over while watching this film, make sure your not eating pizza or at least give a quick glance at the toppings.

--Like many slasher films, this one has only one cop dedicated to the case, and he is so nerdy and dumbfounded, it makes it all the more hilarious. A funny scene is when he apprehends a kid from trespassing and the kid says his name is "Ben Dover." It takes the cop 2 minutes to finally realize the punchline. Lines like "What's all this I hear about an ear?" adds to his gumpy character.

--Only thing that was annoying about the film was that the two lead girls always stayed in the house even though body parts were showing up around the house for a few days. It was like they were confined into the house. The ending could have had more explanation too. It even makes you feel sorry for the killer (in a funny sort of way).

--Overall, Offerings is not that bad of a film, it's definetely worth your while.

6/10

You'll know right from the very first minutes of Offerings that the director is a huge Halloween fan. The basic story of a little boy returning home after a stay in a mental hospital and terrorizing young women is Halloween to a T. The music is so similar to John Carpenter's seminal classic that one wonders how the filmmakers of Offerings weren't sued.

There isn't really a scary or suspenseful bone in Offerings' body, but there's tons of downhome charm, quirky performances, and entertaining set pieces to keep it from being an unwatchable rip off. All the girls seem to have some dazed expression on their face for most of the film and a few of them speak in a strange southern meets valley girl accent that's a real hoot.

A few of the murder scenes are fairly well staged and done with a bit of panache as well.

This one won't reinvent the wheel, but it's a fun time killer.

When I first saw OFFERINGS three years ago I absolutely despised it for being a complete rip-off of one of my favorite horror movies Halloween. I recently got bored and decided to rent it from my local video store. I was looking forward to ripping it a new one Mystery Science Theatre 3000 style with my buddies. They all had a good laugh at it (they had never even heard of the damn thing). I was somewhat taken back by it. It is a rip-off movie, yes, but you know what It is a pretty slick rip-off movie. You could do a whole lot worse when it comes to low budget slasher films. I actually have come to appreciate the style it creates in some of its scenes. Don't get me wrong its still packed with laugh out loud bad acting and things of that nature but what the hell? Not even close to being as bad as I once thought it was. I say give Offerings a view. In my book it deserves at least a 4.