A
bunch of kids at a campground in New York
called Camp Blackwood seeks revenge on a
sadist camp caretaker who carried garden
shears with him named Cropsy (Lou David)
by trying to scare him as that was
exactly we he did to the kids but however
the prank goes too far as he is badly
burned as well as the campground and then
sent to a hospital.
Five
years later Crospy has recovered but
badly scarred as he returns to the
campground for revenge as a nearby camp
starts up as kids are trying to enjoy
themselves by playing softball, hiking,
swimming, canoe riding and camping out as
well.
However, one of the kids named Alfred
(Brian Backer) doesn't feel like he fits
in and has a hard time making friends
with the rest. Plus, he is bullied by one
of the tougher kids named Glazer (Larry
Joshua) which makes his summer tougher
for him.
However, the counsellor named Todd (Brian
Matthews) tries to help him out as much
as he can but he tells the kids a
campfire tale about Cropsy and during
that night Alfred claimed he saw Cropsy
staring at his window but no one believes
him.
Suddenly
one of the girls named Karen (Carolyn
Glenn) gets hacked in the throat by
gadren shears and then is taken away. The
campers look for her as they are
concerned but they suddenly become
Cropsy's next target till he has a deadly
plan for one of the people running the
camp.
If you have Friday
the 13th and Sleepaway
Camp what do you get??? You get
this film. Although many put this one
down and is easily forgotten I very much
enjoyed this as it had a killer, summer
camp, mean kids, pranksters and the
slayings. What more can you ask for?
The film was made on a bit of a lower
budget than Friday the 13th
and not as suspenseful but so what??? It
still carries on it's own and a shame a
sequel never arose but again probably no
interest as this one came out the same
year with other slashers which were close
to being obscure and were trying to be
just as popular like Graduation
Day, My Bloody Valentine
and Just Before Dawn.
Many of these
actors started out on this film and some
moved on to be household names just like
anyone starting off doing low budget
horror.
Their acting is good for it's time by
most of them but there are moments it's a
little rough.
Brian Matthews pulls his character
off as a laid back camp counsellor but
gets strict when he needs to which he
seems to play around not too bad.
Leah Ayres pulls off her part as a
counsellor for the girls very clearly and
is very impressive.
Brian Backer was better in his part
in Fast Times at Ridgemont High
but still seemed fairly okay as his part
as a put upon teen at the camp.
Larry Joshua played a perfect bully
at the camp showing great menacing
attitude as he was believeable by acting
threatening as well.
This was a first timer for Jason
Alexander as a camper chasing girls
and his part in the film was not as
memorable as the rest but he still pulled
off a nice character for his part in it.
Carrick Glenn seems to do well for
herself as the popular teenage beauty
which of course is what we need for a
slasher flick.
Fisher Stevens stands out well as a
slim teenager in the film and has the
right looks to be in a camp slasher
flick.
A breast shot on Carrick
Glenn taking a shower
A few kids moon someone
There's a full nude body shot from top to
bottom Carolyn Houlihan when she
goes skinny dipping in a lake as well as
coming to onshore in the woods looking
for her clothes.
There's a butt shot on Larry Joshua getting
up from a sleeping bag in the woods.
A hooker is
stabbed in the stomach with scissors
Throats are cut open and stabbed
A group of people on a raft are butchered
with their fingers cut off heads sliced
and a cut off arm.
Plenty of blood but it looks a wee bit
phony
For a typical
slasher film, Tony Maylam did
what he could do for it and passes but
yet it's also dated, cheesy with some
leaky holes in it at the same time as
well.
We spot good shots on some teenage
supporting actors planning a prank and
then nice shots on Keith Mandell
going into a cabin to set up the prank.
There's also good close up shots on
Lou David sleeping in his bed.
However when he freaks out it looks very
phony. But we have a nice shot of him on
fire spinning around as well as him
running and rolling down to a lake.
A nice shot on David walking out
of his wheelchair to some doors of a
hospital letting himself out.
There's a scene with David and a
supporting actress K.C. Townsend
as a prositute in a hotel room but it
looks lacking. However, Townsend
does have great shocked expressions after
she sees what has happened to him.
A nice outdoor setting of kids playing
softball and a good dialogue between Jason
Alexander and Ned Eisenberg discussing
a hot girl on one of the bases which
gives you that Meatballs type
of appeal.
We have a good moment with supporting
actress Shelley Bruce going into
the woods to look for a softball with a
camera approaching her. Next, a great
shot on some garden shears ready to kill.
A good shot on Carrick Glenn taking
a shower and suddenly hearing a noise and
has nice frightened reactions.
Leah Ayres does well by criticising Brian
Matthews about his lack of
discipline the kids pulling pranks.
Matthews really does well by coming
down on Brian Backer for what he
did but Backer needed a bit more
direction with his words to why he is
doing this stuff.
There's a nice bullying moment with Larry
Joshua towards Backer
grabbing his shirt and threatening him
which looks like a real bully towards a
smaller kid.
Matthews does a good job by getting
strict and tough towards Joshua.
There's another nice bullying moment with
Joshua pushing Backer
in the water off a pier.
A nice moment with Joshua screaming
a freaking out after he is shot in the
butt by a pellet gun on a pier.
A great camera shot lurking towards a
cabin window at night.
There's a nice dark moment with
supporting actor Fisher Stevens
walking to his cabin and then a nice
frightened look on him when he sees
someone coming in and is about to
activate his flashlight.
We see a nice setting of a campfire
hosted by Matthews telling the
story of what happened to Crospy but yet
the setting is totally ripped off from Friday
the 13th Part 2 if you watch the
campfire tale on that one but there are
good close up shots on the cast at the
campfire.
There's a perfect shot on both Eisenberg
acting forceful towards Carolyn
Houlihan in a pond.
She also does well by acting nervous when
she tries to look for her clothes on
shore and a good shot on the garden
shears coming at her.
A good moment with Joshua acting forceful
towards Glenn near a tree as well as a
nice shot on them fornicating in a
sleeping bag.
A perfect shot on David's legs
between Glenn in the sleeping
bag with her frightened expressions
trying to hold back his shears.
here's a great shot on a death scene
performed by Joshua as I know
it's a spolier but I won't say what it is
as you got to see for yourself and it is
grusesome looking.
A nice shot on David's hands
grabbing Backer and pulling him
away and then gagging him as well as
tying him up.
A nice shot on a raft led by Eisenberg
while they spot a canoe as they put alot
of energy during this scene. There's a
great shot on the raft coming closer as
well as the canoe and a perfect shot on David
rising up from the canoe in the sunlight
with his shears getting ready to kill.
A great shot on Ayres reaching
to the raft in the water and a piece of
arm falling onto her with her screaming.
There's a perfect shot on Ayres
and supporting actor J.R. McKechnie
in a motor boat trying to go and rescue
others.
There's a perfect dark setting on Matthews
in a run down mine shaft holding an axe
along with some good flashback sequences
involved from the beginning of this film.
We see a good battle between David
and Matthews as well as some
nice menacing expressions by Backer.
The ending scene with bit part actor John
Tripp as a new camp counsellor
telling the tale of Crospy at a campfire
was an absolute classic!
The music was cheesily
composed with a synthesizer by Rick
Wakeman which is the downfall of
this film as it sounds quite Z-grade.
Todd:
There's a camp not far from here, just
across the lake. It was called Camp
Blackfoot. No one goes there anymore.
Everything burnt down. This camp had a
caretaker, and his name was Cropsy. Now,
this Cropsy was a sadist, and he got real
pleasure out of hurting... scaring. And
he had these garden shears. The kind with
long, thin blades. He carried them all
the time, wherever he went. And he had
this kind of demonic way of look at you.
One time, Cropsy really went after this
kid from Brooklyn, followed him around
night and day. He made this kid's life a
living hell. But this time, he chose the
wrong guy, cause the kid and some of his
buddies had planned a little prank. Only
problem was, the gag went wrong. The next
thing anybody knows, Cropsy's trapped
alive and burning in his bunk. They try
to get him out, but the fire's so fierce,
they can't reach him. All they can do is
stand outside and listen to him cry out
in agony. They say his smashed his way
through the bunkroom door in just a mass
of flames. And as he burned alive, he
cried out, "I will return! I will
have my revenge!" They never found
his body. He survived. He lives on
whatever he can catch. Eats them raw,
alive. No longer human. Right now, he's
out there. Watching, waiting. Don't look;
he'll see you. Don't move; he'll hear
you. Don't breathe; you're dead!
Todd:
What do you expect me to do. Cut his
balls off?
Dave:
[looking at Playboy] God bless her
mom and dad.
Marnie:
Hey Todd... over here!
[last
lines]
Camp Counselor: They never found
his body, but they say his spirit lives
in the forest. This forest. A maniac, a
thing no longer human. They say he lives
on whatever he can catch. Eats them raw,
alive maybe. And every year he picks on a
summer camp and seeks his revenge for the
terrible things those kids did to him.
Every year he kills. Right now he's out
there. Watching. Waiting. So don't look;
he'll see you. Don't breathe; he'll hear
you. Don't move; you're dead!
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