Hell Fest | Film Review

In the new franchise wannabe-startup Hell Fest, a group of unassuming patrons venture out to a horror-themed amusement park in search of scares and terror. Unknown to them, another patron – whose face is never shown – looms in the background before beginning his nightmarish quest to slaughter the hapless thrill-seekers.

As you fumble through reviews of Hell Fest, you’re bound to stumble on two distinct variations of criticisms: those that pick apart the logic and circumstances, and those that just want a fun round of stabby-stab in the dark. Both camps have their merits, as Hell Fest makes you guzzle down logistical improbabilities by the gallon while also making the stalking hella fun, but the most important question remains: is this flick worth a journey to the cineplex with your fellow gorehounds?

If you love the Friday the 13th and Halloween series of films – and I mean the sequels – then sharpen that axe because you’re going to love Hell Fest!

The biggest advantage this film has over the countless other slasher flicks in the cinematic databank is the cast. From the opening frame, our main group (led by standouts Amy Forsyth and Reign Edwards) cement themselves as people we actually care about and root for. In a film like this, too often we’re stacked with archetypes – scream queen, jock, jokester, rude asshole acquaintance – before the ultimate dispatching and impaling. At least four of our main six I’d personally take the plunge to Hell Fest with, and that’s a huge compliment for this genre.

As our characters begin to realize something is amiss, the structure of plotting the entire film in a place surrounded by people whose job it is to terrify you begins to play its role. This is actually used to intriguing effect most of the time, as well as the occasional “no, idiot, RUN!” One of the more intense scenes I’ve witnessed in recent horror occurs when our heroine, Natalie (Forsyth), stumbles across a killer (who comes across as just a regular guy in a hoodie with an insanely eerie mask) catching and slaughtering his prey as she watches, even encouraging him to kill her. Because to Natalie, this is all fake. It’s living a horror movie…isn’t it? As Natalie and her friends continue on, her new fan marks her group as the one to mutilate before his parking pass expires.

Director Gregory Plotkin knows his way around a horror set-piece and Hell Fest zips by at a pace that keeps us engaged even as the final act starts to stretch the laws of logistical possibilities to their thinnest. Slasher films like this rarely capture that early 80s vibe, where despair is often countered with fun, but Plotkin keeps this energy up throughout, even as we’re laughing at a few final character choices.

If you’re looking for the next reinvention of horror or an intelligently executed reimagining that challenges the mind, prepare for disappointment. But if you’re like me and love those slasher romps from the 80s and 90s, and you feel like spending time in an amusement park I’d kill to make a reality, all while watching several characters worth rooting for get picked off by the world’s most patient serial murderer? Get your ticket now.

Hell Fest doesn’t quite earn a VIP, but it’s easily worth a night out with friends. Just remember not to split up this time.