Vicious Fun Takes A Stabs At 80s Horror-Comedy

By RodneyHatfieldJr for Movies

If you are like me, you like a little laughter with your horror. Then ‘Vicious Fun’ may be for you. The latest venture from the nice folks at Black Fawn Films, plus it’s a horror-comedy. Like any good horror-comedy, it combines tongue-in-cheek humor and lots of splatter gore. 


horror
Here is the synopsis: Set in Minnesota, 1983, Joel (Evan Marsh, Shazam!), a caustic horror movie critic who’s pining for his roommate. After a night of excessive drinking, Joel finds himself in the midst of a self-help group for serial killers. He must blend in, or be found out and face the violent consequences. As might be expected, Joel’s improvisation skills aren’t quite as honed as he’d like, and things turn sour fast. 


orror
This marks the feature film debut for writer James Villeneuve, and he should be proud. The script is sharp, self-aware, and witty, and I will be keeping an eye on his future projects. The cast is all excellent in their roles. David Koechner (Anchorman, Cheap Thrills), Amber Goldfarb (TV’s Bad Blood), Ari Millen (TV’s Orphan Black, I’ll Take Your Dead), Julian Richings (TV’s Supernatural, Man of Steel), Robert Maillet (300, Immortals), and Sean Baek (TV’s Killjoys).


i2.wp
The snappy dialogue that pokes fun at the whole genre won me over. One of the serial killers wears a mask, wields a machete, and often has the misfortune of leaving one sole survivor. Another likes to dress as a clown. While another dons a clear raincoat and has a collection of business cards. How about a cannibal chief? Anyone that’s familiar with the horror genre in any way will appreciate the homages. Another personal point of appreciation is self-aware skewering. It adopts decades-old fashions and sensibilities that have still left their bloody mark on our own era of genre filmmaking – and while certainly vicious in its stabbings, strangulations, and general slaughter, it is also affectionate in its double-edged nostalgia, and never, ever forgets to be fun.


wp-content
'Vicious Fun' possesses great energy and doesn’t let the pace drop for a second. There’s a lot to say about 'Vicious Fun', but really, if you’ve read this far, then you know you should just go see it yourself. You’ll have a lot of fun. And it will be 'Vicious Fun'. I hope you like neon lights, nostalgic(down to Marty McFly clothes), and a prominent sound atmosphere composed of synthesizers. But then again who doesn’t.


Share this article on: