Johannes Roberts’ Forest of the Damned looked like it was going to be one of those cheap and nasty Brit affairs that we see from time to time, but it actually surpassed my low expectations and stirred an interest in Gatlin Pictures previous and upcoming features.
The plot sees a group of friends (named after the Breakfast Club’s Brat Pack) lose their way on a holiday only to encounter a pack of beautiful, seductive and ultimately scary fallen angels.
After an accident the kids soon split up to find help and it is here that two of them encounter a scary and mentally imbalanced Tom Savini.
The film has a brilliant gritty visual style which did come close to matching that of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre as it was actually achieved through talent and style as opposed to dust on the viewfinder.
The cast do good jobs for the most part, with Sophie Holland coming over like that new girl from Hex, but even more of a bitch.
The film may not have the best story but its eerie use of ambience, Most Haunted like night vision sequences and blood splatter make it a mildly disturbing hour and a half, and it’s wrapped up nicely by an appearance from horror author Shaun Hutson who plays himself in a clever little epilogue.
OVERALL SUMMARY
As films go it’s not a remarkable stand out piece of independent cinema but it’s a solid little horror picture that was better than many recent big budget horror flicks.
