HARVEST OF THE DEAD is yet another inane indie horror film, shot in the British countryside and following a quartet of young women as they go camping in the woods. The centrepiece of the film is some very mundane ghost story telling around the campfire, before things move forward to a mild, torture porn-style climax. There's virtually nil horror content here, just laughable drama; it's not good at all.
2 Reviews
Enjoyable enough anthology/lasher mash-up that does have a few issues
kannibalcorpsegrinder15 May 2022
Taking a trip out into the English countryside, a group of girlfriends decides to spend the night telling ghost stories and camping out, but are soon forced to escape from their own real-life nightmare.
The Good Stor(ies): Pumpkin Pie-Standing around the campfire one night, a group of friends manage to inadvertently disrespect a supernatural pumpkin, causing it to come to life and enact a series of murderous fantasies. This one wasn't all that bad despite the segment's low-budget making for a series of obvious cheats to the death scenes by cutting away in a series of glitchy, computer-rendered images that are never told to us or by the flimsy nature of the pumpkins floating in mid-air. Still, the idea of this one coming true in the nature it does is quite chilling and there's enough to like with the
Project #39-Headed out to a haunted church, a team of paranormal researchers attempt to carry out an investigation as usual but are soon forced to confront something they've never come across before. This was a pretty solid segment. The cliche setup of the ghost hunters getting more than they bargained for means nothing really new happens throughout the segment, but overall there's a lot to like with the creepiness of the ruins they're shooting in for the underground church and the surrounding woods. The reveal is handled well enough being done through the found cameras of the doomed crew and the final twist is nicely handled if somewhat disappointing, but overall this has a lot to like.
The Myth of the Plague Doctor-Taking a road trip together, a group of girlfriends head out for a getaway in the countryside but soon come across someone or something out in the wilderness hunting them down one-by-one. This was a decent enough entry that really could've gone even better than what ends up happening. The simple slasher setup that gets them lost and encountering the killer is a fine one, getting some decent suspenseful imagery out of the setting. The graphic kills and imposing killer look great which helps to offset the confusing ending which makes no sense since it just cuts off without explaining anything, which isn't a huge problem though.
The Bad Stori(ies): Bait-Attempting to do some night-fishing, a group of friends is surprised when their catch decides to bite back in more vicious ways than expected. This one showed a lot of promise but was just too short for its own good. It barely has any time for a setup involving the two arriving at the spot and then separating just enough for the attack to take place. The idea is great but it needed time to actually employ it, not get cut off before the good stuff happens which is the case here since everything else here works quite well.
Wrap-Around-Taking a trip out into the English countryside, a group of girlfriends decides to spend the night telling ghost stories and camping out, but are soon forced to escape from their own real-life nightmare. There are some flaws to be had with this one. One of the biggest problems is the general lack of anything resembling an explanation for what's going on. The central point of the girls going on the trip is never given, only that one of them recently went through a break-up which is only given on the ride there, so due to that the original purpose is never given. Likewise, the cult being out in the woods and going through their ceremonial rituals or killing off anyone who trespasses against them goes unexplained leaving this part feeling quite confusing which all hold back the reveal that it's actually an anthology setup until quite far into the film. While there are some decent gore and kills featured here, it's not nearly enough to make sense o this one.
Harvest of the Dead-Waking up the next morning, the friends find themselves stranded in the woods with no way out and soon come face-to-face with something far more dangerous than she expected. This one has a lot to really like and dislike about it. The best part here is the first half with the group waking from the night before and showing the results of the stalking through the woods that ends up getting a few solid stalking scenes featuring the killer getting some rather impressive scenes as well as the girls getting lost. It does get a little lost with the revelation in the second half that comes off with little information about what's going on or how it all ties together. It makes for a rather fun but troubling conclusion to this one.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Graphic Violence.
The Good Stor(ies): Pumpkin Pie-Standing around the campfire one night, a group of friends manage to inadvertently disrespect a supernatural pumpkin, causing it to come to life and enact a series of murderous fantasies. This one wasn't all that bad despite the segment's low-budget making for a series of obvious cheats to the death scenes by cutting away in a series of glitchy, computer-rendered images that are never told to us or by the flimsy nature of the pumpkins floating in mid-air. Still, the idea of this one coming true in the nature it does is quite chilling and there's enough to like with the
Project #39-Headed out to a haunted church, a team of paranormal researchers attempt to carry out an investigation as usual but are soon forced to confront something they've never come across before. This was a pretty solid segment. The cliche setup of the ghost hunters getting more than they bargained for means nothing really new happens throughout the segment, but overall there's a lot to like with the creepiness of the ruins they're shooting in for the underground church and the surrounding woods. The reveal is handled well enough being done through the found cameras of the doomed crew and the final twist is nicely handled if somewhat disappointing, but overall this has a lot to like.
The Myth of the Plague Doctor-Taking a road trip together, a group of girlfriends head out for a getaway in the countryside but soon come across someone or something out in the wilderness hunting them down one-by-one. This was a decent enough entry that really could've gone even better than what ends up happening. The simple slasher setup that gets them lost and encountering the killer is a fine one, getting some decent suspenseful imagery out of the setting. The graphic kills and imposing killer look great which helps to offset the confusing ending which makes no sense since it just cuts off without explaining anything, which isn't a huge problem though.
The Bad Stori(ies): Bait-Attempting to do some night-fishing, a group of friends is surprised when their catch decides to bite back in more vicious ways than expected. This one showed a lot of promise but was just too short for its own good. It barely has any time for a setup involving the two arriving at the spot and then separating just enough for the attack to take place. The idea is great but it needed time to actually employ it, not get cut off before the good stuff happens which is the case here since everything else here works quite well.
Wrap-Around-Taking a trip out into the English countryside, a group of girlfriends decides to spend the night telling ghost stories and camping out, but are soon forced to escape from their own real-life nightmare. There are some flaws to be had with this one. One of the biggest problems is the general lack of anything resembling an explanation for what's going on. The central point of the girls going on the trip is never given, only that one of them recently went through a break-up which is only given on the ride there, so due to that the original purpose is never given. Likewise, the cult being out in the woods and going through their ceremonial rituals or killing off anyone who trespasses against them goes unexplained leaving this part feeling quite confusing which all hold back the reveal that it's actually an anthology setup until quite far into the film. While there are some decent gore and kills featured here, it's not nearly enough to make sense o this one.
Harvest of the Dead-Waking up the next morning, the friends find themselves stranded in the woods with no way out and soon come face-to-face with something far more dangerous than she expected. This one has a lot to really like and dislike about it. The best part here is the first half with the group waking from the night before and showing the results of the stalking through the woods that ends up getting a few solid stalking scenes featuring the killer getting some rather impressive scenes as well as the girls getting lost. It does get a little lost with the revelation in the second half that comes off with little information about what's going on or how it all ties together. It makes for a rather fun but troubling conclusion to this one.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Graphic Violence.
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