Hatchet (film)

Infobox Film
name = Hatchet


caption = Promotional poster for "Hatchet"
director = Adam Green
producer = Adam Green
writer = Adam Green
starring = Joel Moore
Tamara Feldman
Deon Richmond
Mercedes McNab
Kane Hodder
Parry Shen
Robert Englund
music = Andy Garfield
cinematography = Will Barratt
editing = Christopher Roth
distributor = Anchor Bay Entertainment
released = September 7, 2007
runtime = 83 min.
country = flagicon|United States
language = English
website = http://www.hatchetmovie.com/
amg_id = 1:348199
imdb_id = 0422401

"Hatchet" is a 2007 slasher film from Ariescope Pictures [http://www.ariescope.com/] and directed by Adam Green. Set in the Louisiana bayou (and filmed in Jonesville), it is the story of the legend of Victor Crowley. A group of tourists discover that the legend is real and more horrifying than they ever imagined. It features an all-star horror cast that includes Kane Hodder ("Friday the 13th"), Robert Englund ("A Nightmare on Elm Street"), Tony Todd ("Candyman"), Mercedes McNab ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer"), Deon Richmond ("Scream 3"), and Joshua Leonard ("The Blair Witch Project"). Hatchet is billed as "a throwback to the glory days of horror that literally saws the face off the 'slasher film' as you know it."

Taglines:
*"It's not a remake, it's not a sequel, and it's not based on a Japanese one. Old school American horror."

*"Stay out of the swamp."

Plot summary

The film opens on two hunters, Sampson and his son, Ainsley, fishing in a swamp during a full moon. The two don't seem to like each other that much, and Ainsley keeps complaining about having to use the restroom, making Sampson row their boat to shore. While Ainsley is urinating, Sampson falls silent so Ainsley goes to see where he is and finds Sampson's mutilated body. He grabs his rifle and panics, only to be attacked by a strong, monstrous being who rips his arm off, pulls part of his spine out and rips his body in half. The setting switches during the credits to a Mardi Gras celebration in downtown New Orleans, with drunk people, people taking off their clothes, and vomiting galore. In the middle of this mob is a group of friends including Ben and his best friend Marcus, who have come to have some fun, since Ben's girlfriend of eight years recently dumped him. Ben decides to go on a haunted swamp tour to escape the madness of Mardi Gras, and Marcus hesitantly agrees to go with him. The two then go to the swamp tour registry, only to find that the tour is closed because the tour guide was sued. The tour guide then suggests that they try a place farther down the street, owned by the over-the-top, cheesy, inexperienced tour guide, Shawn. Once they arrive, Marcus decides to leave but changes his mind upon seeing two topless girls: Misty, a ditzy porn star, and Jenna, a bossy, boastful, up-and-coming actress. Their sleazy porn director, Shapiro, is also there. Ben pays for both himself and Marcus and Shawn leads all five of them to his tour bus, where the other tourists, Mr. and Mrs. Permatteo, a Minnesota couple, and the quiet, hot-tempered Marybeth, are waiting.

As the tour begins, Ben tries to make friends with Marybeth, who rudely rejects him, and Marcus takes a liking to Jenna. Shawn obviously doesn't know what he's doing, and the others start to catch on just as he arrives at the swamp. Shapiro has Misty and Jenna strip down and film a scene for "Bayou Beavers" as everyone gets onto the boat, while a homeless swamp-dweller tries to warn them away from the swamp. Shawn takes them anyway, touring through boring swamplands and past abandoned houses, including one where Victor Crowley, a deformed creature, lived. While looking at "ghost lights"; however, Mrs. Permatteo sees someone in the trees, and Shawn accidentally crashes into a rock, sinking the boat. To reach land, they must walk across a broken tree. While crossing, Mr. Permatteo is bitten on the leg by an alligator, making him, Misty, and Shapiro fall into the water. They all get to shore and run to safety, while Mr. Permatteo bleeds profusely. They realize that Shawn isn't an actual tour guide; he's just a college student looking for money.

Marybeth takes out a gun she brought and informs them that her father and brother, Sampson and Ainsley, disappeared while fishing nearby, presumably at the hands of Victor Crowley. She then tells them the real story of Victor Crowley, a deformed boy who was kept hidden from the world by his loving father. One Halloween night, a group of kids decided to scare Victor by throwing fire works into his house, but instead the house was engulfed in flames. Victor's father returned home and tried to hack down the door with a hatchet. Because he did not realize that Victor was on the other side of the door, he hit him in the head, killing him. Victor's father died of a broken heart. Marybeth tells them that Victor still roams the swamp, as a vengeful spirit, killing anyone who enters, especially at his house, which they all are standing in front of. Mrs. Permatteo becomes infuriated with how scared everyone is and decides to help her husband into the house herself. While walking up to the house, Victor emerges and hacks Mr. Permatteo in half, making everyone run away, except for a frightened Mrs. Permatteo, who then has her head ripped in half by Victor's bare hands. Marybeth shoots Victor, but only makes him fall.

The others finally meet up with each other, while Shapiro runs off farther into the swamp, where he has his head twisted off by Victor. Marcus has climbed a tree, and with some encouragement comes down from the tree, only to attack Shawn for getting them all in this mess. Ben separates them, and Marcus decides to take charge, asking if anyone else has a secret. Jenna confesses that she does not go to NYU, the college she was bragging about. They then discover Shapiro's body and equipment and find out that he really wasn't a porn director, but a slimy businessman who just wanted to start a porn collection on his own. Marybeth suggests that they go back to the Crowley house to get some weapons, and all six of them head back to the house. Jenna, Shawn, Marcus, and Misty stand guard, while Marybeth and Ben go into the shed to get weapons, but find Sampson and Ainsley's bodies instead. Ben comforts Marybeth, and they grab a shovel and a pitchfork, while the others begin to get scared by noises in the bushes. All of a sudden, Jenna is grabbed from behind a tree by Victor, who uses a belt sander to sand off her jaw, while the others scream, and Marybeth and Ben arrive with the weapons. Marybeth hits Victor with the shovel, making him fall and get stabbed with the pitchfork by Ben. Shawn goes to grab the shovel but Victor grabs it first, chopping off his leg with it, and then decapitating him while the others run away. Victor then takes the wounded Jenna and impales her on the shovel then chases after the remaining cast.

The others finally slow down and decide to lure Victor back to his house and set him on fire with the gasoline tanks in the shed. They quietly head back to the house, and Ben goes into the shed to get a full gasoline tank, while Misty stands guard and Marybeth and Marcus act as bait to lure Victor to his demise. While Ben is trying to find a full tank, Marybeth and Marcus discover that Misty is missing, and her head and torso are thrown onto Ben by Victor. Ben finds a full tank and throws it on Victor, while Marybeth and Marcus set him on fire, only to have it rain and put the fire out.

The three begin to run through the cemetery they passed and find that the gate is locked, and Ben is tackled by Victor who spits up in his face but is then dragged to safety. They start to run away but Marcus gets grabbed by Victor and has his arms ripped off and then his head smashed against a tombstone. Victor then grabs a gate stake/pole and chases Ben and Marybeth, throwing it into Ben's foot. Marybeth bends the pole until it's pointed right at Victor who is running towards them and is impaled on the pole. Ben and Marybeth then get onto Sampson's abandoned boat and head out into the water, where Marybeth is pulled in, getting twisted up in the seaweed. She finally sees Ben's arm sticking down in the water for her to grab, and is pulled up by Victor who is holding a dying Ben's severed forearm, and the film ends.

Cast

*Tamara Feldman as Marybeth
*Joel Moore as Ben
*Deon Richmond as Marcus
*Mercedes McNab as Misty
*Kane Hodder as Victor Crowley / Mr. Crowley
*Parry Shen as Shawn
*Joleigh Fioreavanti as Jenna
*Joel Murray as Shapiro
*Richard Riehle as Mr. Permatteo
*Patrika Darbo as Mrs. Permatteo
*Robert Englund as Sampson
*Joshua Leonard as Ainsley
*Tony Todd as Clive Washington / Reverend Zombie

Film festivals

Hatchet was selected for the Fifth Annual Tribeca Film Festival 2006. The film premiered to 5 sold out nights and rave reviews. Variety, the Los Angeles Times, and the New York Times all hailed it as one of the biggest hits of the festival.

Hatchet was selected for the 2006 London FrightFest Film Festival [http://www.frightfest.co.uk/Hone.html Fright Fest Official Homepage] at The Odeon West End on the 25th August 2006. It was introduced on stage by Adam Green who hosted a Q&A session afterwards.

Hatchet was selected for Sitges International Film Festival in Spain in 2006.

Hatchet was selected for Fantastic Fest in Austin, TX in 2006. The film sold out both nights, resulting in extra folding chairs having to be set up in the theater and audience members sitting in the aisles. The film walked away with the audience award for "Best Picture" as well as jury prizes for "Best Actor" (Kane Hodder) and "Best Special Effects".

Hatchet was selected for Germany's Fantasy Film Festival in 2006. As part of the festival, the film toured Munich, Stuttgart, Nuremberg, Frankfurt, Cologne, Bochum, and Berlin.

The film's last festival appearance in 2006 was at the October Screamfest Horror Film Festival in Hollywood. Adam Green introduced the screening and promised that the film had found a U.S. distributor, although at the time he did not reveal the name of the company. He also suggested that the release version of the film was likely to have its violence cut down in order to achieve an R-rating.

Hatchet was selected for 3 more festivals in 2007 right before it's release, including Montreal'sFantasia Film Festival and France's Weekend De La Peur.

Harry Knowles from Ain't It Cool News picked Hatchet as one of the "Top 10 Films of the Year" for 2006. Also on the list was Pan's Labyrinth, 300, Children of Men, and Rocky Balboa.

MTV listed Hatchet as one of the Top 10 horror films coming out in 2007.

Looking to this film to help save "R-rated original horror" in an era of bad remakes and PG-13 films, the fans started the official HATCHET ARMY and have taken it upon themselves to raise awareness about the film. The group can be spotted at horror conventions nationwide. They have helped spread the word by contacting movie theaters directly to make sure that they are playing Hatchet on September 7th.

Rating problems

The film was originally given an NC-17 rating for extreme violence and gore. After two months of appeals and revisions, it received an R rating by the MPAA for strong bloody horror violence, sexual content, nudity and language. Director Adam Green found the process to be frustrating and arbitrary: "Ultimately, it came down to frames and a couple shots,” says Green of the re-editing. “There’s a few deaths that don’t go the distance anymore. For instance, Joleigh still gets the belt sander put in her face. And Patrika can still get her face ripped in half, but Richard can only get hit with a hatchet a certain number of times. It was thirteen times that he got chopped before; now it’s three.The unrated director's cut was released on DVD on December 18, 2007. [ [http://cinefantastiqueonline.com/2007/09/06/hatchet-adam-green/ » HATCHET: Interview with writer-director Adam Green ] ]

References

External links

* [http://www.hatchetmovie.com/ Official Site]
* [http://www.myspace.com/victorcrowleylives Official Victor Crowley MySpace]
* [http://www.ariescope.com/ Ariescope Pictures]
*imdb title|id=0422401|title=Hatchet
*amg title|id=1:348199|title=Hatchet
* [http://www.mtv.com/shared/movies/flickd/t/tribeca_film_festival_060504/ MTV Article about Tribeca Film Festival]
* [http://www.movie-censorship.com/report.php?ID=4700&In=WikE Detailed Comparison between R-Rated and Unrated Version]