Mask Maker

FILM - Mask Maker aka Maskerade

DIRECTOR -  Griff Furst

YEAR - 2010

DISTRIBUTOR - 101 Films

RUN TIME - Approx 90 mins

VIDEO - 1080p

AUDIO -  English: 5.1 DTS-MA

REGION FREE

SLASHER

Ever heard the phrase 'what's old is new'? Well Mask Maker isn't quite that successful but it is very entertaining.

WARNING THIS WILL CONTAIN SOME SPOILERS

A crazed Witch and her deranged deformed Son are murdered by the local towns people when she kills a child. Years later a trendy 20 something couple buy the house where it all happened.  They get it at a bargain price so they can do up and sell it on. However when they get a group of friends over they unwittingly resurrect the axe wielding Son, the Mask Maker. Turns out it probably wasn't such a bargain after all, they end up paying with their heads.

I was pretty chuffed with this one. It has a mid 90s feel to it mixed  with what boils down to a greatest hits collection of scenes from other classic slashers. Often the scenes are not done quite as well but it makes for a very fun watch. If your looking for something new then its probably not the film for you but if like myself you wish there were more Slashers these days that give a nostalgic peak into classics of the past then this is well worth your time.

I really liked the cast and characters of this one. Its nice to go back to that 90s twenty something feel. They even dress more like young up and coming professionals from the mid 90s which really adds to the nostalgic feel of the film. If I had a criticism it would be the films lead played by Nikki Doloach (Days of Our Lives) is simultaneously attractive and irritating so I was never quite rooting for her but at the same time I sort of liked her to. The characters are fun and there's some good banter between the friends. Michael Berryman (The Hills Have Eyes) makes a appearance as the local shop owner and Terry Kiser (Weekend at Bernie's 1 & 2) does a great job as the local scary guy who warns the noobs.

The Mask Maker himself is simultaneously a pretty cool villain and a bit hokey. He's very similar to Jason Voorheess in stature and rips the heads from his victims to wear them as masks. There's no real reason explained for this other than he's deformed but it makes for a creepy character that also occasionally looks a bit daft.

His kills range from poor in the special effects department to pretty cool the further it gets in. They set up the kills quite nicely with characters almost telegraphing how they will die in conversation. Fortunately its not so heavy handed that it diminished the amusement of the setups.

I could probably have done without the flashbacks to the towns peoples execution of the Witch after the initial prologue. It probably would have been better served just to extend this introduction rather than be spliced every so often. But I'd rather have it than not at all because its its quite a cool scene.

As far as the production is concerned when the film started I was put off by the filtering they used. I'm a fan of vivid and bright colours and I found the dark autumn palette hard to enjoy at first but once they get to the old house and backwoods farm setting the aesthetic really suited the film and really gave it the right tone. There's some great lighting that really clicked with the palette.

The film as a whole flows quite well and clearly some care has gone into recreating the feel and style of older slashers. On occasion the film is slightly under and over edited for my taste which is a real shame. They come so very close to nailing the action/kill scenes but the edits just slightly off. Still though its more than serviceable at the same time. But then I did notice it so its worth a mention.

Mask Maker comes from UK Distributor 101 Films on Blu-ray. Its not available on BD anywhere else and is confirmed region free in case your wondering about importing. We aren't talking reference quality here but the picture quality is really quite nice to my eye. There is plenty of detail and its sharp. I'm sure its a fair step up in quality to the DVD edition. It's only real downside is unless you count a menu as an extra its completely devoid of Special Features. Its always a shame but I'm just happy it made it to Blu-Ray. There are so many Slashers that just never get a release, especially the lesser known direct to video ones.

In case you want to try before you buy Mask Maker is also available on US Netflix in HD at the moment but to be honest I think its well worth a purchase on Blu-Ray. For Slasher fans there is plenty to like about it even if there is very little new about it. Despite it borrowing heavily and not exactly delivering as well as its forefathers its really nice to revisit this style. Some might find it derivative I found it nostalgic. If every low budget Slasher was like this I'd be more than happy. I doubt it will happen but I'd love a sequel.

6 times shorter than you might think to pull some ones face off out of 10