Blood Rage is a weird movie. This was my second time watching it and I had a much more positive opinion of the movie this time. My first time seeing the movie was something I wasn’t prepared for. The story is only part of what I wasn’t prepared for. The performances of certain roles make the movie so entertaining.
The performances from Mark Soper and Louise Lasser make the movie what it is. Soper’s performances are honestly pretty amazing. The differences between how he plays Todd and Terry are noticeable and make them both feel incredibly different. That’s helped along by the costumes and hair, but the performances really make everything feel grounded in the story. Lasser’s performance feels unhinged. She goes from a kind of shitty mom to a mom that’s pretty evidently shitty. That makes her character feel like she is willfully ignorant of Terry’s true nature.
I don’t know how much of what ended up on screen was in Bruce Rubin’s original script. There’s also the possibility that John Grissmer had to make some changes while shooting. The movie also got cut to pieces and it has two other names. Its other names are Nightmare at Shadow Woods and Slasher with the former title being a heavily edited version for cable. I don’t know if the incestuous vibes from Terry and Maddy were in the script but its there with the performances. The effects for all of the kills are great. I can only assume the heavily edited version isn’t nearly as fun to watch. That being said the music by Richard Einhorn is awesome. The main theme gets you pumped and ready for the chase scenes and is even slowed down for use at times throughout the movie. When slowed down it gets a sinister vibe that feels completely different.
Blood Rage is a hell of a movie that needs multiple viewings to get everything you can from it. I liked the movie so much more this viewing than I did the first time. I think going forward it will be a standard part of my Thanksgiving tradition and something I want to share with people. I was able to watch the movie through Tubi once again, because it has a wide selection of movies and TV shows. I give Blood Rage 7.5 cans of cranberry sauce out of 10. [kofi]
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