Starring - Sushii Xhyvette Holder (Sushii's Sex Seance, Pandemic Thirst), Jessa Jupiter Flux (OnlyFangs, Curtains for Christmas), and Danielle Page (Strip Club Massacre, Zombie Horror)
Release Date - 2025
Genre - Horror/Comedy
Format - Streaming (Online Screener)
Rating (out of 5):
Seasonal and holiday themed slashers have always been a favorite of mine. Sure, I love almost all sub-genres of horror but I've always been particularly fond of slashers even before I found myself obsessed with the genre. You can find slashers for every holiday. We have a few for birthdays, Arbor Day, Independence Day, Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Hannukah, and so on. I love the fact that we have so many slashers for Halloween and Christmas but it has always bummed me out that we only have a handful of slasher flicks to dig into for New Years. A couple has popped up in recent years but before those we were stuck watching the same few films over and over. A few days back I was contacted by director Richard Tanner to review his new film Screw Year's Eve. I was familiar with this one and graciously accepted the chance to check it out. Thanks Richard for sending this one over!
The film follows a young woman with a wealthy father who decides to throw an 80's themed New Year's Eve party in one of his warehouses. The small town doesn't celebrate New Year's Eve anymore after a horrible prank gone wrong many years before but shrugs off the superstition. The DJ sets up for the night and she gets ready with her friends before the party starts but once the music drops, so does the bodies. One by one they are brutally murdered before she learns who the killer is and her family's ties to the horrible accident all those years before.
I'll be honest about this one. I went into it thinking it was a zombie flick of sorts. I knew from the few posts floating around social media that it was a slasher flick but the artwork I had seen prior to viewing the film made me think that the killer was undead or supernatural. That was not the case at all. What we do have here is a solid slasher that doesn't try to look like an 80s slasher but does use a clever plot device to get fans into the nostalgia feel while delivering the traditional slasher story. It's not a perfect film but it's entertaining as hell. The acting in this one is a bit uneven but it's not the worst I've seen. Some of my favorite actresses in the indie scene appear in this one. We have Angel Nichole Bradford making a small appearance. She does a solid job but in her role but it is short lived. We also have a short but unforgettable performance from Niv Aranea. Her character doesn't have a lot of screen time either but she makes the most of it. Her character is one of the highlights of the film and brought a lot of laughs once she was sloshed. With that being said, Sushii Xhyvette Holder, Jessa Jupiter Flux, Danielle Page, and Jon Devlin (Erecting a Monster, Phallacies) make the film. Devlin brings in some humor and once shit goes off the rails he is able to flip his character completely around. I've been reviewing films of his for several years now and I love seeing how he uses all this experience in new roles. Sushii and Jessa absolutely nail their roles as well which is what was expected. These two are indie horror icons and always go above and beyond with their roles. This time the pair are matched with Danielle Page who is fairly new to me but she delivers just as big a performance as everyone I had previously mentioned. She has several credits already under he name on imdb and I will be checking those out as soon as I can. The supporting cast is solid as well and I would be here all day if I took the time to credit everyone for the great performances. The story for this one is the traditional slasher formula set against a New Year's Eve party. We have someone that was wronged several years ago, in this case it was a prank gone wrong, who is now picking people off one by one. We don't have a masked killer but we do have a Krueger inspired sweater and a Misfit's Devilock hairstyle which somewhat makes up for that. The premise of the film borrows from the classic slasher My Bloody Valentine where a horrible accident prevents the town from celebrating a holiday only for a group to disregard warnings only to die one by one. That's one of my favorite slashers so I really enjoyed this one paying tribute to it. Finally, the film has several deaths with a lot of blood but they are not really that memorable. We get one super fun death featuring Niv Aranea's character that will stick with you for days after watching but the rest are easily forgettable with some minimal but decent practical effects. Overall, Screw Year's Eve is not a slasher trying to capture that 80s look and feel. While so many slashers try and fail to do that, this one uses a clever idea to host an 80s themed party and let nostalgia run with our imaginations. It features a great cast and caters specifically to those of us that love the classic slasher formula. This is one I highly suggest checking out!
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