Schlitter: Evil in the Woods (2024) Written by Pierre Mouchet and Nicholas Robin

Schlitter: Evil in the Woods (2024) 

Schlitter: Evil in the Woods (2024)  Written by Pierre Mouchet and Nicholas Robin

Directed by Pierre Mouchet

A Horror Movie Review by: Mark Walker

IMDB

***Perhaps some very mild spoilers ahead***

Schlitter – Evil in the Woods opens with a flashback to the fairly unpleasant childhood of Lucas (played by Antime Calbrie Ekeloo as a child and  Louka Meliava as an adult) who sees his best friend Mathais (Nelson Maerten) run down by his father and tossed over the side of a ravine to hide the accident. Lucas lives in fear of his angry and bullying father so says nothing about the disappearance, his silence guaranteed by his fear.

Fast forward 20 years and Lucas returns to his childhood home following the accidental death of his parents in a house fire. He arrives to pick up a pinball machine (of all things) with his girlfriend Julie (Léna Laprès) and friend Arnaud (Côme Levin) who is in a rush to get back to Paris for a date. As they get ready to leave, Mathais’ father, Francis (Gilles David) arrives to tell Lucas he has something that his parents left for him.

Schlitter: Evil in the Woods horror movie review
Schlitter: Evil in the Woods

A wheelchair user after an accident with his Schlitter (a sled designed to carry wood from the forest) the group of friends feel unable to refuse an invite for coffee, despite Arnaud’s desire to get back in the car and drive away.

We all know this is the point of no return, and they should have listened to Arnaud.

When they arrive at Francis’ cabin, their car breaks down and, wouldn’t you know it, the local garage can’t help until the morning, and the nearest alternative is miles away! Francis suggests it would probably be better if they stayed the night. 

Uh-oh!

And so events are set in motion that will see old secrets and a desire for revenge collide in brutal and violent ways.

So, let’s get this out of the way straight off. Growing up in the 80s, as a teenage boy, me and my mates would have watched this just because of the name. ‘Schlitter’ is just a funny sounding name, and the film itself takes the mickey out of it. But I was intrigued to find out what it was and what it meant and, while it is not particularly sinister in of itself, I am glad I was intrigued as, although Schlitter won’t set the world of horror alight with a new and original take on the revenge horror, it is a bloody good little film.

Schlitter: Evil in the Woods horror movie review
Schlitter: Evil in the Woods

And I say little as it is barely over 70 minutes long and can probably only just be called a feature film. I noticed IMDB lists it as a TV Movie but, while this could sometimes strike fear into the viewer’s heart, I don’t think this label has quite the same connotations in terms of quality as it might have had 20 years ago. ‘Direct to TV’ or ‘Direct to Video’ are no longer terms reserved for content too poor to get a cinema release.

You will probably be able to see where Schlitter is going from very early on.

But that isn’t the issue. There is no real great secret to reveal here (well, maybe one) but the fun of Schlitter is seeing how it plays out and how the sins of the father are metered out against the son and his friends. Not everyone will survive the night, but then we would be disappointed if they did. 

With Francis having a history of working the forest, he has a barn full of hammers, electric saws, chisels, and a love of building dangerous looking mousetraps, so when things go full tilt, we get to see one fantastic contraption that would give JIGSAW a definite run for his money. Is it fair that Lucas and his friends bear the brunt of a heart-broken father’s desire for revenge? Probably not, but then that makes the film all the more impactful.

There are some little twists and turns along the way.

And the cast are all great, believable characters. We get a believable set up as Francis entices them back to his cabin, a harmless old man in a wheelchair. Arnaud is, to be fair, a bit of a dick, so the audience is made to feel sympathy for Francis, before the rug is pulled. My only real criticism for Schlitter is a complaint that could be levelled at many horror films and that is of the unkillable monster.

Firstly, I get quite annoyed (more than likely irrationally) when people fight a bad guy, knock them to the ground or unconscious, but don’t finish the job, letting them get up, Terminator-style to have a another go. I get the need to build tension and horror, and we don’t want people getting out of trouble too easily, but Schlitter felt like it did this one time too many; surely someone could have delivered the coup-de-grâce sooner than when it finally arrived?

But maybe that is just me trying to find problems?

The Heart and Soul of Horror Review Websites Schlitter: Evil in the Woods (2024) 
Schlitter: Evil in the Woods

It’s a minor thing and, as I said, you kind of expect it – and you know I would probably be moaning if it was over too quickly or if the final girl actually just dropped her heels and ran out of the front door, rather than upstairs!

Overall, Schlitter – Evil in the Woods is easily worth the score it gets on IMDB, it’s lean and mean at just 70 minutes, so hard to justify NOT watching it to be honest. While it doesn’t add any major updates to the genre, it is well directed and acted and is worth it just for the basement contraption designed to illicit revenge.

Schlitter: Evil in the Woods is available on Digital Platforms 26 August. Distributed by Signature Entertainment

Schlitter: Evil in the Woods

Trailer YouTube: https://youtu.be/65pvFnY8byc

Author

  • Mark Walker

    Hi! I’m Mark Walker, a writer living in Gloucestershire with my family and a plethora of pets ranging from the practicality of Chickens to the downright creepiness of Tarantulas.I dabble in all kinds of writing, particularly screenwriting and short stories, but am branching out and have started working on longer-form novellas and novels.

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