Scream Park (2012)

The Worst Film Ever

Simply A Masterpiece

Must See Movie...

Admirable film.

This movie pays homage to horror movies from the past. Though it's not entirely sure which decade it really is looking up to (70s or 80s, which is something the trailer also mixes up when it compares it to some of the films back then). But being slithery to a point one can not pin you down to something specific, does not mean it's something bad. But if you copy something from the past, try to distill the best from it.Budget wasn't that high I reckon (I saw 40.000 as a number somewhere, not sure if that's true), but the movie has a lot of issues. The location isn't one of them. The framing and the cinematography on the other hand combined with the lack (or absence) of acting ... That's something you feel. The effects are decent ... by 70s standards. Same tricks from back then are being used, maybe even the 60s. Not a selling point either. And the ending is rather predictable ... or if you're nice, is being pointed out throughout the whole film. And how many times can one mask be used for jump scares? Way more than one too many in this one ...

I picked up this movie at Best Buy on a lark...It was obviously made by non-Hollywood types who really love 80s horror movies.I think they nailed just about every trope of the 80s slasher spot-on (prepare your checklist). They even had an awesome cameo by Doug Bradley in there! (how did they score that?!?!)The production values are definitely not top notch and the acting ran from non-existent to totally over-the-top. But that's what made this movie fun!Have some beers, bring your film-school friends and have fun imagining that it was you and your friends making a movie in really scary-looking run-down amusement park. I enjoyed the occasional glimmers of awesome amid the not-great sound (but great sound track!) and the sometimes slow pacing gave me time to make wise cracks.Just don't sit down and seriously expect that this $9 DVD (made for $40K total according to IMDb) is the next Citizen Kane. It's just fun. :-)Bonus fun: Do a shot every time someone asks about Blake. :-) You won't be disappointed!

Scream Park Directed by Cary Hill Written by Cary Hill Starring Doug Bradley, Wendy Wygant, Steve Rudzinski, and Nivek Ogre Distributed by WildEye Releasing Running time 85 minutesFright Land is closing, seems no one wants to spend their time, let alone their money at the aging amusement park anymore. The staff of the beleaguered park have agreed to send off the place with a bang, planning on partying the night away on the closing eve. As soon as the gates lock, the bodies begin piling up. Right from the get go with this one I was thinking "Fun House", classic 80s cult carnival slasher film, but the film showed itself to be more than I expected. It features an interesting cast of characters with Doug Bradley (Hellraiser), Nivek Ogre (band Skinny Puppy, Repo: The Genetic Opera) along side relative new comer Wendy Wygant (Jennifer) and slightly more seasoned actor Steve Rudzinski. Nivek and Bradley obviously help pull an audience to this one right away, just the two of them are worth the price of admission (or DVD purchase) alone. Bradley, and Nivek both turn in strong performances that you would expect, but the rest of the players do admirably also. Granted its filled mainly with lesser known's they put up a decent show, albeit a little flat on occasion.One thing I was particularly pleased with in the film was that they were able to offer a nice twist in what felt like a very familiar story line, that really made the Scream Park itself feel more tangible. It added an unexpected level of interest and believably to a genre that can sometimes feel a bit lack luster in storytelling. It was one of several really smart choices that help this film stand out in the crowd.Scream Park will have a strong appeal with many fans. It offers a nice body count, some fun slasher moments, and a nice visual homage to the films many of us watched in the day that grew the genre into what it is now . Add that to a cast that would make any first time director the envy of any set and you have a film that delivers just what you expect going in... A bit of of the yummy goodness we love in slashers, blood, boobs,tension and just an all around good time! Its another example of why Wild Eye Releasing is developing a nice following of fans. They distribute films we enjoy watching, not just once but time and time again! *HeatherOmen* TheHorrorNation.net

But for me, I already own this movie 15 times. Being in an amusement park doesn't set it aside enough to make me care about the characters or plot. The plot is weak and most of the characters are paper thin. The one thing all indie films should EXCEL at is a great script. This film does not deliver.Almost every character is so bland that I couldn't find myself invested in any of them.That's not to take anything away from some of the actors. The two leads (Wendy Wygant and Steve Rudzinski) both excel at the roles they're supposed to play. Wendy is a very capable lead, making me believe in being frail but badass while Steve is perfect as a really nice weasel. Doug Bradley does great in his five minute cameo, as should be expected from one of the greats. Nivek Ogre also certainly brought his character to life in a great way, I hope he keeps doing more films as he was a perfect maniacal killer.The rest of the acting is an extreme range though. On the GREAT end you have Alicia Marie Marcucci and Kyle Riordan, both were a joy on screen. On the HORRIBLE end you have Kailey Marie Harris and Tyler Kale, who seemed to have gotten their parts based on their looks alone and never went through an actual audition. To round out the kids we have both Nicole Beattie and Dean Jacobs, neither of whom are bad but are seen so little that they never get a chance to show off who the characters are."So that's all well and good Andy, but what about the rest of the movie?" Well since the biggest issue I have is with plot and characters I'll keep everything else to a minimum.The movie is a combination of great looking and poorly shot. There aren't many "bad" shots, just that often times there's a chance for great establishing shots in a terrific park that we never get, too much of the camera is right up in character's faces. This is purely subjective, but the best shots in the movie were things like the wide establishing shot of a killer on the other end of a body of water or a victim on a carousel. Great mood setters that were too few between.Pacing in general is fine except for a painful Act 1. Never before have I wanted to kill a character we never meet more than Blake, as he is the entire focus point of all of Act 1. Which is even worse given that the pay off is really a let down. Otherwise Act 2 and 3 move along nice and brisk. I appreciated that the killing is also sprinkled throughout a good chunk of the film, as opposed to being all in the end (some indie slashers suffer from this).The kills as a whole are okay. Some look great, some look bland. The best was by far the one with the axe you don't see coming until it's too late. Body count is a grand total of 9. For most people this will be plenty, for me I felt like I wanted more.The music in the movie is great. It was wonderfully creepy and well done.Editing is also for the most part really good. There are definitely times when there's some poor shot usage or off scenes, but I've seen enough movies to know that there's only so much an editor can do sometimes with what he has. Although in the copy I had, there were full blown unfinished effects in a surveillance room. Marking tape was clearly visible where footage was supposed to be, footage that would appear randomly. I really hope this is a case of it being an early copy and not what will end up being released.The killers are good, but I can't help but feel I'm giving them a pass due to Ogre's amazing performance. I think it's more than possible that anyone less great than Ogre would have made the killers really bland. BUT, since Ogre is in fact in the movie and his performance is in fact amazing, I do like the killers in the movie. Both are just different enough and the outfits are pretty interesting.So would I recommend this? No. To be fair, this isn't a BAD movie. Objectively it's pretty average, I should score it a 5/10. But personally, I just didn't like it. Especially since it really seems like they had a lot of money to make this (the actors and location), yet I've seen plenty of movies made for under $5000 that were better. That shouldn't happen, Scream Park should have been better. That alone, for me, is enough to knock off that extra star for it to be a 4/10.For the average slasher fan you may very well enjoy the movie. It has a great location, a few great kills, and a few great actors. But personally, I just didn't like this.There's certainly potential and I do look forward to what comes next from the writer/director. Hopefully Cary Hill can learn from the mistakes he made and the next film he makes will be even better!