Terrifier (2016)

Director: Damien Leone

Starring: Jenna Kanell, Samantha Scaffidi, David Howard Thornton

On Halloween night, Tara Heyes finds herself as the obsession of a sadistic murderer known as Art the Clown.

You have to admire the creators for what they’ve accomplished with this ultra-low budget slasher horror movie. They’ve created a new, unforgettable and utterly creepy villain: Art the Clown.

We know nothing about him, but does that really matter? He’s a lunatic. A demented psychopath. Or maybe even a supernatural being? Whatever the case might be, Art the Clown is a frightening character. Make sure your kids never see this! They’ll be scared of clowns for the rest of their lives!

As with most slasher movies, there’s no real story here. We have a bunch of victims set up for the kill. The story starts with two young friends Tara and Dawn leaving a Halloween party. They’re all dressed up, and more than just a bit intoxicated. They see a clown approaching, and Dawn makes fun of him. When they head to a diner, the clown follows – and this is only just the beginning of a horrifying night.

This is not a bad film considering its budget, but there are a few issues. Firstly, and most obvious, I guess; the sound effects were not good. The film would have been so much better with good sound effects. Secondly, the acting wasn’t all that great – apart maybe for Jenna Kanell as Tara. She reminded me of Neve Campbell as Sydney in the original ‘Scream’. And off course David Howard Thornton did a great job bringing Art the Clown to life.

Then there were a few credibility issues. Some scenes seemed to have been added for effect only and were not logical or realistic, like Art the Clown posing as a female victim (!!). And how did he manage not to utter a sound when he got hurt? I mean this guy actually gets tortured by his victims, and makes no sound whatsoever. Instead, he merely mimes pain. Unless he is mute, off course. But if not, it would be completely unnatural and not believable. Again, I believe this to be for effect only.

Some of the kill scenes are incredibly gory. One scene in particular is so gory, it’s almost sickening. Those who have seen the movie, will probably immediately know which scene I’m referring to. It is very well done, though. With the film’s ending, I can also only assume Art the Clown is not human.

Would I watch it again? I don’t think so.