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Wonderful character development!

How sad is this?

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

BLOOD OATH is a shot on video indie slasher flick that was put out by Troma, and that comes as no surprise given the poor quality of the production. The cliched story has a bunch of friends heading off into the woods for a bit of fun, to find only death awaiting them instead. There are small roles for scream queens Tina Krause and Tiffany Shepis, but this is generally devoid of interest. A bit of titillation and a bit of gore are the only draws here.

Here's yet another zero budget shot-on-digital backwoods slasher made by amateurs, this time from around the Nashville, Tennessee area. When watching movies made for peanuts I try to be a bit more lenient and forgiving than usual when it comes to poor camera-work, ragged editing, muffled sound, amateurish acting, awful writing, etc. What I can't forgive is a complete and utter lack of creativity. After all, why bother watching something like this in the first place if you've already seen the same exact thing done before by professionals who actually had a budget and talent to work with? BLOOD OATH fails simply because it doesn't do anything that hasn't already been done ten times better elsewhere. The fact it's flatly shot and ugly to look at, horribly acted and written and establishes a potentially interesting back story for the killer but then tosses it aside like an afterthought so it can concentrate on business as usual just makes matters worse. But hey, I'm sure everyone had fun making it and at least they managed to get their movie released on DVD, so at least that's something.Things start out with a couple getting ready to have sex in a car out in the woods only to be interrupted by the guy's ex-girlfriend, who keeps calling him. The girl grabs the phone and tells the ex that all her man cares about is "...how hard his d*** is gonna be when he's f***ing me in the a**" before a killer shows up and does them both in. The girl is gutted and the guy has his head chopped off in what has to be one of the worst and most cartoonish CGI decapitations ever. We then meet two teen couples; Lisa (Natalie Hart) and Kevin (James Reynolds) and Beverly (Katie Vaughan) and Charlie (Roger Horn), who for some reason decide to investigate a local urban legend about a disfigured killer who supposedly lives in a cabin in the woods and pretty much get what they deserve in the process. Throw in a quartet of female college student campers who are around solely to provide a little T&A and then die and that's about all there is to this one.The only other point of note is that they attempt to develop a mythology of sorts for the killer, which involves a couple making a pact with a beautiful witch, a set of female twins, a car crash, a magical "jewel- encrusted golden vial" and blood sacrifices. Unfortunately, after this story is related via flashbacks around a campfire, nothing further is done with the idea and this instead opts to play out like every other tired, generic slasher-in-the-woods flick. The killer; a hulking, fire- scarred, shaggy-haired woman (well... sort of) decked out in a patchwork dress, isn't the least bit scary or intimidating. Her motives for killing everyone she comes across also aren't made all that clear. Her parents made a "blood oath" and died as a result, but why exactly does she now need to make blood sacrifices? None of this is adequately fleshed out, which renders the killer's origin element utterly pointless. Ditto for the ridiculous reveal that one of the lead females is - surprise! - related to the killer and just happens to be there by sheer coincidence.The names being used to sell this are Scream Queens Tiffany Shepis and Tina Krause. Both keep their clothes on and are killed after appearing for just a matter of minutes, but are being billed as the stars on the DVD cover. Don't be fooled. The rest of the cast is comprised of inexperienced amateurs who stand no chance of making it through looking good thanks to the awkward and unnatural-sounding dialogue they're forced to recite. A few of them have hick accents though, so at least that was funny.

Four friends venture into the remote deep forest to check out an old cabin. Naturally, the quartet run afoul of a vicious disfigured mad woman (a frightening portrayal by Patrick Holt) who doesn't take kindly to strangers poking around her neck of the woods. A familiar story for sure, but fortunately director David Buchert relates the enjoyable plot at a steady pace, makes good use of the secluded sylvan setting, pours on the in-your-face graphic gore with unapologetic aplomb, creates and sustains a suitably creepy atmosphere, generates a substantial amount of tension in the nerve-wracking last third, and even tosses in a few tasty naked boobies for good measure. The acceptable acting from the competent no-name cast rates as another definite plus, with solid work by Natalie Hart as the sweet Lisa, Roger Horn as the likable Charlie, Jamie Reynolds as the easygoing Kevin, and Katie Vaughan as the spunky Beverly. The startling outbursts of savage violence pack a really nasty punch. Popping up in nifty bits are Tiffany Shepis as the sassy Janet and Tina Krause as flaky college student Jennifer. William Sherry Jr.'s dynamic shuddery score hits the skin-crawling ooga-booga spot. Matthew Dyer's rough'n'grainy cinematography gives the picture an appropriately grungy look. A fun fright flick.

I suspect that director David Buchert has carefully studied and absorbed the influences of some of the best horror genre movies in recent years which include the tags urban myth, cabin, students and woodland and then neatly utilised them in this film.He is to be commended on this approach which I would liken to the way in which some of the most successful musicians and bands take on board the music of past masters when moulding their own distinctive style.Being a first time director has to face the familiar hurdle of financial budget restrictions which limits the scope for enlisting the number of experienced actors to appear in the project as well as locations and sets. It is necessary to find the right blend between experience and newcomers to the camera and I applaud the way in which he has made a solid base for the film by obtaining the services of Tiffany Shepis and Tina Krause. These two very talented young ladies have made numerous films within the horror genre and even though their appearances are brief ones in the early stages of the film they depart having firmly anchored the film on firm foundations upon which the inexperienced cast members can build during the rest of the film. Both these actresses put their previous screen experience to good use during their dramatic elimination process at the hands of the lurking individual who is destined to provide problems for the rest of the cast in the remaining scenes.Among the other cast members there is certainly one standout performance by Natalie Hart. She appears to be confident and competent young actress in what develops into the leading role. I was rather surprised on checking her page on IMDb that she does not appear to have any further films to her credit after this one as she seems to demonstrate a talent which should have been developed further.The filming conducted in the outdoor woodland locations are well done and there appears to be full and effective use of available surroundings. The bright daylight outdoor scenes contrasted well with the darker indoor shots, eg within the cabin, with both contributing to the creation of the desired atmosphere.