Week-end de terreur

I first saw this in the early 90s on a vhs n was totally surprised. This movie came during the era of slashers but the kills were offscreen n the nudity nada. Revisited it recently n liked it very much. A group of friends take a trip on an island estate, on their way due to a prank gone wrong, a deckhand gets seriously injured. Later on the estate, one by one starts disappearing. The film has lots of twists n turns n a solid ending which was very surprising for those days. The location of the island estate is done well n the mansion really beautiful. It is a very different take on the slasher genre n a very clever one.



I think Michael Douglas' The Game is inspired by this movie.

Ten youths about to graduate college celebrate at a remote island mansion in the Great Northwest, soon to be inherited by one them (Deborah Foreman). Unfortunately, they start getting hacked one-by-one. Who's the killer?

"April Fool's Day" (1986) is a slasher/horror in the cabin-in-the-woods mold; it's just that the 'cabin' in this case is a magnificent mansion. The presence of Amy Steel, who played Ginny in "Friday the 13th Part II" (1981), brings to mind that series but, besides Amy, the female cast isn't as notable, although it's okay. You might remember Deborah Foreman from "Valley Girl" (1983) and "Real Genius" (1985).

On the other side of the gender spectrum, Ken Olandt is a Kevin Bacon lookalike while Clayton Rohner is reminiscent of Val Kilmer.

Regrettably, the pacing is off and so not enough suspense is worked up. Any "Friday the 13th" flick is all-around more entertaining, not to mention "Slumber Party Massacre II" (1987), which has similarities. But "April Fool's Day" gets points for the outstanding location and something revolutionary that happens, which I can't give away.

The film runs 1 hour, 29 minutes, and was shot at St John estate, Victoria, British Columbia, with additional studio stuff done in Los Angeles. It was rebooted or reimagined (not remade) in 2008.

GRADE: B-

Heiress Muffy St John invites a group of college friends to spend the weekend on her island estate. But it is the First of April and some of the jokes begin to get out of hand.

Slasher film of the 80's without a copious amounts of blood is rare, and April Fool Day is one of those rarity. It's a slightly offbeat film, comes across as more of a mystery than a slasher and the last minutes in particular is quite tense. It can be a bit slow and non-event with some characters acting silly in the beginning but it progressively gets watchable and ends with a twist. One thing though the characters come across real even if they are the usual nerd, lusty or nutty teen.

I saw this for the first time over 35 years ago (and have seen it several times since then), and have always liked it!

It's quite an intricate whodunit, with a youthful touch - giving it the appearance of being a cheap Friday The 13th ripoff.

But there are good actors here, who play interesting characters that you want to know more about, and a story that for the first time viewer is pretty damn exciting!

In a large house on an isolated island, a group of young college students gather, invited there by Muffy St John, the future heir to a family fortune. She has planned a weekend full of April fools pranks, and so have the participants.

After a while, it seems that someone is hell bent on taking the pranks to a whole other level...

Deborah Foreman, Amy Steel, Ken Olandt, Jay Baker, Deborah Goodrich, Clayton Rohner, Leah Pinsent, Tom Wilson and Griffin O'Neal inhabit the island, and it is they, and Danilo Bach's story, that make this as watchable as it actually is.

Charles Bernstein's music adds to the mood, and I wish it had been used more.

-But, having said that, the lack of music during the first half of the movie is also what creates the atmosphere. The muffled sounds of footsteps, drawers being opened, and doors being closed, as the party-goers familiarize themselves with their rooms, feel uncomfortable.

And letting them make various unpleasant discoveries in their rooms, during complete silence, is effective.

The whoduni-story should mean that the replay value is low, but I've seen this a number of times, and still think it's pretty damn entertaining.

One of the more fondly remembered horror entries of the '80's is this unique gem that's much more clever and amusing than the average slasher film.

Young woman invites her beloved college friends to her island home for a weekend of fun, but everything goes wrong. A freak accident occurs, mysterious things appear in the guests rooms, our hostess starts acting strangely, and bodies are starting to pile up!

With its clever combination of Agatha Christie-type mystery, teen horror film conventions, and quirky humor - it's not hard to understand why this film has developed a bit of a fan base. Even viewers who don't like horror films may find themselves enjoying this witty and twisted little venture. Director Walton does well in giving the film an air of mystery and spookiness. All the more adding to the atmosphere is the lovely music score of Charles Bernstein. The film is nicely shot in beautiful British Columbia.

The true highlight of this film though is its above-average cast. While there are really no known actors in the cast, they all deliver great performances and bring their characters to a wonderfully likable light! Deborah Foreman, in probably her best performance, is great as hostess Muffy. Ken Olandt and Amy Steel are great as a couple trying to solve the mystery of it all. Clayton Rohner and Thomas F. Wilson are a joy as two joke-happy friends. Jay Baker, Leah Pinsent, and Deborah Goodrich are equally good in their supporting roles.

As the tagliner says, April Fool's Day is certainly a 'cut' above the rest of its kind. It's a fun watch whether you enjoy the horror genre or not.

*** 1/2 out of ****