Death stop holocaust
Low budget Texas Chainsaw inspired horror/road movie with two girls coming a cropper with some masked blokes in a van. An ultra low budget flick from Justin Russell. It's shot like a grimy, grainy 70's exploitation flick. It doesn't quite work as well as it should but still worth catching if you get a chance. Its ruthlessly paced and throws a few nice curve-balls at its audience. Given that its an early low budget effort and shot in 2009 before everyone and their uncle were making their films look like this it's an interesting and ambitious little horror flick.
The Sleeper
While Death stop harked back to 70's rural horror. Justin Russell's follow up is very much rooted in the 80's slasher cycle. It follows a tried and tested formula of sorority girls on campus being targeted by a mysterious ruthless killer and pretty much sticks to the formula as much as possible incorporating nods to slasher flicks like Prom night and Black Christmas. By keeping things simple and no-nonsense Russell focuses on atmosphere and style and manages to make things feel very much like a film found on the shelves of a video store. Its a great little homage that's well crafted and has some nice kills. It's a real shame Russell isn't making more films these days as he's got talent.
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