The After Dark Horrorfest is an annual horror festival that's run independently here in the United States by After Dark Films - the event's chief organizer. Sometimes this gathering is also referred to as "8 Films to Die For" and judging by that phrase you can assume how many films are released with the introduction of each new festival. After Dark Films has been pretty successful in bringing fans some solid titles to add to their collection. Naturally, there are a few that are just plain awful, as with any independent or major-league release...so whether it's the big-time or not, a bad movie is a bad movie. Horrorfest 2007 brought us, in my opinion, probably the worst title yet with Crazy Eights. I honestly thought the low point existed with this film, that is, until I recently witnessed a cruel act upon humanity known as Slaughter; a smack in the face by an iron gauntlet, forcing us to lower the bar of standards so much that not even a rat could limbo under it.The story hones in on a young woman named Faith who resides in Atlanta; having recently escaped an abusive relationship by the hands of her aggressive ex-boyfriend. Faith is then introduced to Lola at a nightclub and the two eventually agree to room together in the outskirts of the city at her father's farm. Faith notices a strange vibe after a short time on the premises when a shocking discovery surfaces during the height of the film's climax.With a title like Slaughter you'd almost expect something drastic or chaotic to happen but you'll be so hard-pressed for a modicum of action you'd have better luck waiting near your bedside window in hopes of Peter Pan whisking you off to Neverland. In place of such whimsical thoughts, you're swept into an hour and 35 minute vacuum, that as you guessed, is comprised of nothing - but oh, maybe just some cheap dialogue, run-of-the-mill acting, and a musical score that centers around showcasing hipster radio hits (perhaps with the exception of one song, which remarkably doesn't fit in with the rest at all). The characters themselves stand around with blank and unintelligible stares on their faces, the plot slows to a crawl almost immediately, and well before anything exciting happens over an hour in, you're so fed up with the aspect of boredom that you could simply care less what happens next. Slaughter emphasizes that it was based on true events, perhaps even as real as the Tooth Fairy or a Hobbit; ludicrously gesturing for us to believe that it holds any importance over the plot or outcome. Humans have experienced the atrocities of real-world serial killers like Richard Ramirez and Gary Heidnik - both of which were brought to justice and dealt with. Did the producers of Slaughter honestly think that some tame, mediocre endeavor would stun audiences compared to the horrors that exist in our society? Get real!One scene depicts an instance where a pair of pliers are used to forcefully remove teeth but even this scene is done so borishly you can't help but wonder why they chose the title "Slaughter" to represent the film. I don't require brutality or a certain level of gore to fulfill my movie-watching needs but it seems that the writers or possibly even the director decided to mix both schools of thought when it comes to subtlety and shock value; what I mean by this is that some scenes have the potential to be extreme, the few that exist, but instead the camera turns away just in time to save us from having to view it. One could agree that if the acting is sub-standard, the screenplay a carbon copy of 500 other horror films, the cinematography and choice of lighting merely "ok", then why not move forward into an area that horror hounds would find favorable? I don't expect a movie of my choosing to be original in its presentation because there are several titles I could list that were either inspired, or came as a result of, existing films; they turned out wonderfully. Slaughter is the reason why the phrase "money-making exercise" was coined...it's simply that, and nothing more; an indelible mark on canvas that cannot be blotted out or removed. I might be able to bend the validity of a film like this if I weren't such a die hard fan and just accepted that it was produced more for the casual viewer - but Slaughter was showcased at a HORROR FESTIVAL. Casual fans don't go to horror festivals, and if they do, they are in the minority. So what exactly where they thinking?! The creators of this film need to remove The Texas Chainsaw Massacre DVD out of their units, tear down the posters of Gunner Hansen they have signed and autographed on their walls, and think up something that offers an air of refreshment - perhaps this will save them from being labeled hacks.

Really? This made it into the After Dark series? This really strikes me as odd. I won't go into plot details because it's already been talked about. I'll just state my opinion. See below if you wish to compare your taste to mine.As a fan of the genre since I was 5 years old (I'm 35 now), and as a fan of the After Dark series, I do have to say that this is probably the worst movie I've seen in awhile. And I've seen some really bad stuff. I own about 3000 Horror movies and I've watched at least 200 in this past year alone. I've watched all of the ADH movies since 2006 and IMO it just keeps getting better every year. -Except for this one. Wow. It DRAGS. It's BORING. And not in the way that a decent psychological horror is slow. Nothing in this movie was done well and it wasn't even slightly entertaining to me. I found myself twirling my headphone cord and looking at the clock thinking, "What? There's still almost an hour left?!". This movie gave me the same feeling as I get sitting in the waiting room at a doctor's office. And again, not slow in a good way like Rosemary's Baby (with build up, character development, decent performances, good dialog, and an unraveling plot). This was quite the opposite actually. It tried to be a psychological thriller, but had absolutely no heart. It was very mechanical and redundant. Obviously, I was quite disappointed because I love this series.Please do not judge the After Dark series (Especially the third series) by this one. It's nowhere near as good as the rest of them. All of the others had something to grab a hold of, and many of them went far beyond that. This felt more like a made for TV movie that was rejected or something (and not because of the lack of gore, there are plenty of dead and tortured pigs in it). Very amateur, and again, not in a good way. Not in the way that we B-Movie hounds love so much.I feel bad writing this because whoever made it at least gave it a shot, but I really recommend skipping over this one and choosing something else from this series. I really hope this one doesn't turn people off to The After Dark Horrorfest, because most of the other movies in the series are extremely entertaining and fun! Examples of Horror That I Like: Phantasm, Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween, They Live, 28 Days Later, Night of the Living Dead, Eraserhead, Texas Chainsaw, The Shining, Sleepy Hollow, Alien, The Amittyville Horror, Creepshow, Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things, The Ring, MBV3D, and all sorts of other classic, new, and/or low budget horror.

If you want to see a psychological shocker, then Slaughter is the flick to see. I recently saw this movie during the after dark 2009 horror-fest and I really liked it. It doesn't have a whole lot of gore in it, but it is pretty violent. The reason that it gets its name, is because of the slaughter house on this farm, where unspeakable acts are being committed. It pretty much focuses on a young woman, who flees from a violent relationship and meets another lonely young woman, who lives on a farm and has a bad relationship with her father. when she arrives on the farm, she uncovers disturbing family secrets that are about to break out and destroy her. This movie is very suspenseful and diabolical. I cant wait for it's DVD release in March, it is definitely worth checking out!

This is going to sound strange, but I think the reason I liked "Slaughter" is because it's not an endless succession of gore. This will probably disappoint some, and I agree that the title is very misleading; it's not a sleazy exploitation film, but a slow, tense psychological drama that actually bothers to tell a story. Granted, it's not very plausible, and I have a hard time buying into the fact that it was "inspired by true events." But what it lacks in credibility it makes up for in both style and character development. It's a deliberately paced film with director Stewart Hopewell opting to let the story unfold gradually before letting the final twenty minutes or so go at full speed. This doesn't always work, but here it allows the audience to take everything in, especially when it comes to the dialogue given to the two leads; I won't give you a list of quotes, but if you pay attention, you'll notice that what they say to each other is ultimately very telling.The tension builds as a direct result of the opening credit sequence, which uses clever camera angles and lighting effects to reveal that an injured, bound woman is being dragged through a field. When the woman and her abductor arrive at a dock, the abductor ties a cinderblock to the woman's ankles and pushes her into a lake. If you think I just gave away a crucial plot point, think again; there's more to "Slaughter" than meets the eye.That's when the story slows down and backtracks. We're introduced to Cathy (Antonia Bernath), a young woman who just left her abusive boyfriend to start a new life in Atlanta. One night, she and her friend, Faith (Amy Shiels), celebrate at a local nightclub; out of the corner of her eye, Cathy notices another young woman who looks like she's being hassled by a man. She intervenes on her behalf, and the two immediately strike up a friendship. Here enters Lola (Lucy Holt), who lives on a farm just outside the city with her father and brothers. She appears to be in a desperate situation, unfulfilled on the farm and hated by her father, especially after the untimely death of her mother some years earlier. She claims she would like nothing more than to get out of Georgia and go far, far away. She vents her frustrations by acting promiscuous, constantly throwing herself at older, rich men, manipulating them into giving her gifts like watches.Cathy likes Lola a great deal, but it's obvious that she doesn't completely understand her odd behavior. She's friendly around Lola, but she's also careful, especially since she's in such an unfamiliar environment. Everything about the farm seems open and welcoming ... except for the slaughterhouse at the bottom of the hill, where Lola's father (David Sterne) spends a great deal of time. One of the reasons it's so frightening is because, for most of the film, it's closed off from Cathy. For a time, the loud squealing of pigs are the only indications that anything is happening.One could make a case for the pigs relating to Cathy's ex, who has constantly been trying to call her. That might be a stretch, however, simply because the symbolism is obvious. There are so many shots of pigs in this film that they have to serve as a metaphor for something. It's more likely that it has something to do with the men in Lola's life, but I can't elaborate on that since too much would be given away. Let it suffice to say that Lola hasn't had the best male role models.Eventually comes the climactic moment when Cathy finally enters the slaughterhouse and discovers a room hidden way in the back, which contains a vacant chair and a locker full of shoeboxes. To describe more would ruin both the suspense and a plot twist that seems expected but somehow manages to be surprising nonetheless. What's interesting is that, in spite of the twist functioning at a level appropriate to horror movies, it's doesn't evoke that same sense of outrageousness other such stories are known for--shocking, but not altogether over the top. We've spent a lot of time with the main characters at this point, which, for reasons I won't reveal, helps a great deal during the film's final minutes.The ending is perhaps too downbeat, and the final shot is heart wrenching in its uncertainty. There is, however, a sickening feeling that it couldn't have turned out any other way, which, if you see this movie, you will find both frightening and sad. Despite being advertised as a dime-a-dozen horror film, "Slaughter" delivers on a level more compelling than what the genre promises. Under different circumstances, it probably could have been widely released as a dark crime drama. That's not very good news for the horror movie fans that were enticed by the title, and if you're one of those people, I'm sorry to tell you that "Slaughter" is not going to be what you expected. But if you're looking for a carefully paced thriller with strong characters, you just might get your money's worth. Chris Pandolfi