The Shadow of Death

Looking to score a new weed supply, a group of friends unwillingly get together to visit the supplier stashing his supply in the woods, but when they find the area patrolled by a psychotic killer targeting anyone that enters the woods must find a way to stop his rampage and get out alive.

This was a solid low-budget slasher effort. Among the brightest aspects of this one is the solid build-up that provides all the requirements necessary to get this one going well enough. The need for the group of friends to head out into the wilderness to find their supplier who has a new stash to give them and their need to go get it personally provides well enough reasoning to get them out into the countryside where they encounter the killer running rampant in the area while also getting a reason for the killer to strike them. The other sidestories that go on here with the secondary characters, including the police officer patrolling the area or the other random strangers that appear, provide the kind of fine setup this kind of film requires. As well, the series of indie-style action scenes involving the killers' antics interrupting the trip comes off as quite fun. Relying on that style of shock ambush sequence coming across random, nameless figures in the woods merely there to enhance the body count, there are some decent aspects to be had here with the scenes offering up some fine kills. Taking out the stoner, the hiker, and the bicyclist among others before turning his attention to the main group, there are some generally fun times to be had with these encounters that turn into slightly more involved stalking scenes once the group is aware of the killer's presence and their race to get out of the area alive. Getting some frantic chasing into the woods alongside some decent gore and some funny one-liners, these all allow for some fun with this one. There isn't much holding it back, but some slight factors are here. The main drawback is the obvious and overwhelming low-budget sense overriding this one, which can be a personal preference feature for some. The guerilla production, lack of elaborate special effects, and a weekend-warrior production style about a random group of friends wandering the woods yelling insults at each other provide enough sense that its origins are omnipresent here even if that isn't an issue. That does carry over into the films' bits that are used to beef up the running time when they aren't necessary, with the series of callbacks to the police station or the stay at the cabin telling stories clearly there to eat up the time. Thankfully, they're not overly damaging and do only manage to hold this one back slightly.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Graphic Violence.

Sometimes you just can't trust the average rating on the IMDb and this film is a prime example . An average rating of 8.1 indicates that this might be good but a grand total of 38 people have voted on this film , a film that I'd never heard incidentally and a film that I wish had remained unknown to me

The film might have been produced to tie in with the recent SIGHTSEERERS and you do get the impression it was being made as it went along . This would explain the one note cyphers posing as real life characters that have the depth of a long evaporated puddle who all spout unbelievable dialogue with the sincerity of Iain Duncan Smith saying the government's welfare reforms will help the unemployed . That said the makers might have invested some time in trying to find the worst cast possible because if they merely grabbed passer bys off the streets the laws of averages dictate that someone , anyone could deliver the line:

" obey the lord you did , and now you return to him as the dog you are "

with infinite more inflexion than the non actress seen here

That said the version of the film I saw had a caption saying " Promotional Copy " occasionally crop up on screen so maybe the non promotional copy was GONE WITH THE WIND in comparison . I doubt it though

THE SHADOW OF DEATH (2012) PLOT-A Killer is loose in the woods of rural England,some teens who have a meeting in the woods to score some weed end up as his victims.

MY REVIEW-The Shadow of Death is a low budget British Horror Comedy and reminded me of Peter Jackson's BAD TASTE with its DYI Special Effects and gore and i absolutely love Practical effects as these days all we see is cgi,also a lot of close up shots of the characters Faces which is just like what Peter Jackson did in BAD TASTE,also there are echoes of THE EVIL DEAD in there what with the rural setting and when they find the Cabin you can tell what influenced the writer/director to make this movie and i love the fact its all shot on location and no studios involved.

Its A slasher movie but not just another run of the mill Slasher,the pacing of the film is very lively and the characters are certainly memorable and often quite funny,I was'nt expecting much from the acting but i was pleasantly surprised, none of them are phoning in their performances, if anything they seem to relish their characters and they don't seem to follow the usual rule of 'have sex then get killed' like you get in most slashers The script develops the characters well and usually i'm on the killer's side but this is a rare slasher in which i Rooted for the Victims,The movie may not have a big budget but it is filmed and edited in a very professional way that you don't even notice the film's budget and they really showcase what you can create on such a small budget.

The soundtrack is pretty damn impressive too as its an independent film it has great independent music and keeps the film's mood up,and i feel the music in the film is essential as its never a depressing score and is very upbeat much like the movie itself,The film is entertaining as hell sometimes its played for laughs but the final 20 minutes is taken quite seriously,I predict that THE SHADOW OF DEATH will get a cult following and i certainly hope it does as it deserves it,i will definitely be buying it on DVD and i recommend all you horror fans support this independent effort.

STAR RATING- * * * * (Very Good)

"The Shadow of Death" (2012) is an upcoming non-budget, British slasher movie reminiscent of classic films from the 70′s and the latter part of the 90′s. "Shadow" focuses on a group of flatmates who stumble upon some woods in rural Southern-England with the incentive of meeting a dealer in order to score themselves a bit of weed. There's also an amateur policeman lurking around on the lookout for any impending action! Little do they know there's a mysterious killer on the loose and no one who enters the woods will be safe! The film uses the classic "urban legend" scenario adding a sense of enigma, inviting the viewer to want to uncover more. Stylistically it achieves a grind-house and 70's seedy horror movie feel similarly to "Last House on the Left" (1972) in terms of its editing.

Writer and director Gav Chuckie Steel has done an impressive job creating an entertaining, edge-of-the-seat horror while incorporating an old-school slasher movie style. The FX on the production are outstanding for an independent film leading to some squirm-worthy death scenes. The characters are entertaining drawing on post-modern archetypal horror victims that at times prove difficult to feel sorry for! However at the same time they could be characters encountered in real life. There's a couple of stoner's, a nerdy character, a Chuck Norris wannabe cop and a potential final girl! Tension is built up from beginning to end with some startling, creepy moments. To an extent "Shadow" could be described as "Texas Chainsaw meets Blair Witch" through being suspenseful, eerie and gory at the same time. What's great about "Shadow" is that unlike most recent offers into the horror genre there is something edgy and raw about it, the fact that it was shot on a Panasonic SD60 camera compliments its intended "grind-house" feel.

Independent movies such as this need to be supported, if your a fan of the horror genre I thoroughly recommend it.