Horror Movie Review: Killer Campout (2005)

The appeal of Killer Campout, aside from it’s extremely short length (including credits and bloopers, less than 60 minutes) is that it really isn’t trying to be anything spectacular. It’s a super low-budget, campy slasher throwback with iffy acting, bad effects and a barebones story.

Written and directed by Frank Durant (credited as Frank D’Agostino – writer and Victor Franko – director. Killer Campout stars Jillian Swanson, Anthony Goes and Patrick Hickey.

It tells a tale as old as time where a group of young adults go into the woods to camp. A nice weekend away, that quickly goes wrong. A man lives in the woods and he is not happy to see the group invading his territory. His answer to dealing with them is to slaughter them one by one. This trip is about to become a bloodbath.

Story aside, there is fun to be had with Killer Campout as it is an 80’s throwback. From the low-budget kills, camera work to hide the poor effects, the music and overly silly vibe, there are worse ways to waste an hour.

Set your expectations low and you won’t be disappointed. In fact, you might find yourself pleasantly surprised. Such as with some of the acting, some of the convincing death scenes and ‘killer approaches’ filming style. This stuff is far better than it has any right to be and there are some fun nods to classic slashers here and there.

At less than an hour, it doesn’t overstay its welcome but it would be a lie to suggest it is a tight and thrilling watch from beginning to end. Such a length should have resulted in something with a bit more pep to it but it’s actually quite slow at first. The killer takes an age to get introduced and the banter between the cast is all fluff.

Once it does kick in, it’s far more fun and while it won’t live long in the memory, it certainly stands out for the right reasons.