The Woods Within

Director - Brandon Prewitt (Dough of the Dead)

Starring - Tori Ahr (Immaculate Possession), Tyler Riley, Jon Kovach (Escape)

Release Date - 2014

Genre - Horror

Format - Streaming (Online Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     Lately it seems like I have been sent more slashers to review than any other sub-genre in horror.  I am completely fine with that because, as I have stated hundreds of times, I fucking love slashers.  I will watch any slasher you shove in front of me but I prefer the ones that pay tribute to the slashers of the 80s and they take us deep into the woods for a night of debauchery and murder.  Last year I was lucky enough to review the Studio 605 film, The Campground.  The film took the slasher back to their bloody roots and showed you can still use the formula that made slashers so enjoyable back then in a modern setting.  Not long ago I caught wind that Studio 605 was hitting the woods once more and this time Brandon Prewitt would be directing.  That film, The Woods Within, sounded great and my love for slashers in the woods made this film a must see.  A few days back The Campground director Roman Jossart reached out to me to review the film and sent me a screener link.  Thanks Roman and Studio 605 for giving me the opportunity to see this!

     The film follows a group of high school students who take to the woods to party it up before they graduate.  However, the mother of one of the young girls forces her to take her little brother with her.  He is pissed because her friends are dicks to him but he brings his friend along and promises to stay out of the way.  That night the group gets hammered and awakens to one of their friends laying in the fire pit burnt to a crisp.  Everyone panics and starts accusing each other until a masked man arrives and starts wreaking havoc among the high schoolers until it is revealed who the killer is and why he is killing.  

     Studio 605 are true lovers of the slasher sub-genre.  Their films use the classic slasher formula that was used in so many great 80s slashers only to be tossed to the side when the 90s slashers came about.  That is what The Woods Within did.  They gave us more of the slashers we all grew up on but in a more modern setting.  The acting in this one is not the best I have seen but is far from being the worst.  Every cast member gave it their all and it really did show in each scene.  Sadly, it also showed their inexperience.  The story for this one is a textbook example of the classic 80s slasher.  We get the teens in the woods doing things they shouldn't while a masked killer stalks and kills them because he/she was wronged.  Though the story is a bit stale it is still great seeing films like this pop up here and there taking us down a road we have not been down in awhile.  Finally, the film has several on screen deaths but they are done in a minimal fashion due to budget.  They are decent kills that pay tribute to the golden age of slashers.  However, the special effects are not that great.  They are effective for the way the kills are filmed but true slasher fans will want more.  Overall, The Woods Within is a solid slasher for true slasher fans.  The film may be weak in spots but the overall film is definitely worth watching.  Check it out!