Larry-115
This is one of those movies that thinks it's winking at you and being playful with the genre, sort of the way Scream did. But it's strictly amateur hour, so badly acted and written that the effort just ends up being embarrassing. Let me put it this way. It's one of those movies that distorts the picture and plays ominous music all the time (and I do mean ALL the time) so as to telegraph to you that something scary is happening, when nothing scary is happening.It's not a matter of it being low budget, as they actually seem to have had some money. (And some of the scariest movies are super-low budget.) It's not a lack of money, it's a lack of the basic ability to frighten or otherwise entertain.
Flood Reed
Since IMDb displays a User Rating which ignores the actual mean score in favor of a mysterious, much lower "weighted" average, it seems only appropriate to also display some of the high praise that the film has been receiving from actual horror media/critics:"Goriest Scene Of The Year . . . a sumptuous visual feast" - Rue Morgue"An intense and gory little surprise of a horror film . . . Highly recommended" - Ain't It Cool News"The kind of indie horror movie every filmmaker should aspire to make." - The Film Splice"One of the most gleefully gruesome movies you're likely to see this year." - Attack of the Couch Potato"A high-tempo celebration of backwoods depravity" - Film Threat"Gnarly, graphic and in your face" - Film Bizarro"Brilliant style . . . a truly joyous experience for all fans of splatter!" - Extreme Horror Cinema"A gore lover's delight . . . a stunning celluloid achievement" - Thy Demons Be Scribblin"An ultra-gory, in-your-face, Deliverance-inspired backwoods nightmare." - Johnny Veins"Gloriously gory . . . a wicked sense of black humour." - Haddonfield Horror"If you are a gore hound, you absolutely have to check out the film." - Dreadworld"Remains tense and entertaining throughout . . . Definitely worth a look!" - Search My Trash "The story is elevated, next-level insanity" - A Southern Life in Scandalous Times"Like a car wreck you can't look away from, and don't want to" - The Horror Honeys"A must watch!" - Horror Movies Blog"This is one you will want to put in your collection." - Horror Society"This movie is a bloody gem." - Rogue Cinema"Made me feel like I was using drugs when I was not" - Wicked Channel"I watched this movie and got a wicked case of the fuzzies." - Reel Bloody"Makes 'Deliverance' look like a nice vacation in the woods." - Horror News Network"This massacre is surely one that should be sitting on your shelf." - Killer Reviews"Keeps viewers glued to the TV" - Splats of Blood
ASouthernHorrorFan
That time all the horrors of a road trip gone wrong met in the woods and ran some cannibal crazed evil up your a**, "American Backwoods: Slew Hampshire" is the terror that unfolded. The film is written and directed by Flood Reed, a man whose lumberjack stature and woodsman appearance is as sexy as it is intimidating. Qualities that are only outweighed by his insanity and talent for creating a "mind-f**k, cluster nut" explosion of entertainment.The story follows some friends out to complete a rite of passage styled road trip to get laid and bond. What happens in "Slew Hampshire" takes that desire and twists it into a perversion of exploitation, and backwood horror that is literally dumbfounding. Seriously there is so many elements of the horror genre colliding in this film that I was delightfully, jaw drop, amazed. Usually films that go for this amount of fast-paced complexity fails big time. "American Backwoods" is not that film. Things hit the g-spot from all angles-g as in gore, gratuity, and greatness. Let me just say that somewhere between "Brokeback Mountain" and "I Spit On Your Grave" permeates a nightmare so insane that only Hell could handle its girth.This is that nightmare. The special effects and gore are visceral, blood-soaked moments of grue that will delight any splatter film horror fan. The cinematography is a blend of campfire horror suspense mixed with grindhouse torture-porn realness. And as if that wasn't enough to pull from Flood Reed brings in some perfectly timed and tuned dark humor that plays with horror comedy, but this film is by no means to be confused with anything currently out there in horror comedy. Whatever crazy that possesses Reed's mind is a beautiful damnation of artistry and madness. "American Backwoods: Slew Hampshire" is an onslaught of gory awesomeness. Overall "American Backwoods: Slew Hampshire" is a fun, twisted blend of Darwinian horror and a hunger games of "Deliverance" inspired terror that should make you second guess that road trip to North America's hidden gems and honey spots. The story is elevated, next level insanity, the characters are dark and evolved. The special effects and atmosphere is exciting and full of classic horror energy placed in a truly modern piece of entertaining terror. A must for any horror fan regardless of which subgenre gets you off!
Terry Boisclair
Slew Hampshire was awesome! This film is like nothing I have ever experienced in my life. It is a demented journey that leads you down a road you'll wish you never knew existed. What transpires on a dark night in the middle of the cruel unforgiving New Hampshire wilderness is pure madness, and pure cinema gold. What starts out as a harmless joyride unfolds into a perverted and barbaric living hell for everyone involved, especially the audience. The vibe is very intense and serious, and definitely not too campy. The film has a captivating and bone chilling plot with some classic one-liners nicely sprinkled into the mayhem. The acting by everyone is fantastic. There are a wide range of characters that all gel together perfectly to give the film great balance. The camera work is superb. I'm no expert, but I thought this was the perfect blend of action, blood and disturbing story-line. Slew Hampshire takes you to an odious place beyond your worst nightmares, yet still you are left wanting more. The director deserves an Oscar for this epic thriller. I highly recommend this film! Check out this hidden gem!
