Review: The Night Before Easter (2014)

Dir: Joseph Henson & Nathan Johnson

From the fledgling talents of slasher site and dedicated podcast hosts Joseph Henson and Nathan Johnson comes this seasonal slayer, released just in time to accompany all that Cadburys and vomiting.

Someone get a mop.

Centring on the murderous antics of an axe-wielding Easter Bunny, The Night Before Easter is a decidedly amateur, though largely charming effort. Set in the unique but improbable environment of a storage warehouse (mercifully called out in the script), the directors’ shared adoration of the genre informs every turn of the film, which should leave fans finding satisfaction in ticking off the tropes as they go.

"Hey! It's you! How you been?"

Much like clotted blood though, the film’s quality is a little inconsistent. The pre-slaughter build-up for instance, is longer than Jason Voorhee’s kill list, and whilst “come for the bodycount, stay for the characters” is an admirable adage, the first half an hour sags horrendously under the weight of its interminable dialogue. Perhaps under a more experienced cast, this might be more tolerable. However, as it strands, there’s an awkward lack of fluidity to much of the conversation. Fortunately, the cast are killed off seemingly in order of acting ability, with a couple of minor exceptions. That said, bitchy Melissa is a lot of fun, and April Sinclair’s Elisabeth a clear cut above her thespian peers. Regardless, the brutal editing of the early chatter would benefit the film greatly.

 

"Egg? For me? Nah, you're alright mate..."

Speaking of brutality, the murderous setpieces are refreshingly varied and some of the gore effects remarkably convincing. Occasionally, the footage shot can’t quite keep up with the script’s demands, but overall, there’s a satisfying splatter to the mayhem. Disappointingly however, the final showdown happens entirely off camera. Whether an artistic decision or simple matter of logistics, it sadly makes for an unavoidably underwhelming climax.

On the audio front, Scott Henson’s delicious electronic score evokes the downbeat synth of an Argento or Carpenter and as such, is terrific.

 

Dante: good name for someone in a low budget indie flick.
Anyway, liked this fella.

There are a few technical limitations: lack of focus, a low level of lighting and the apparent desire to make almost every shot a Dutch tilt can prove somewhat frustrating. But I’m not going to rag solely on these issues – it’s a first effort, and this film sows deeply the seeds from a production team that could one day produce a great genre bloom. Henson and Johnson know the slasher inside-out, play to its strengths, and have the basic structure locked down for their next gory venture.

 

Melissa: bee-yatch.

The Night Before Easter is an early draft. A demo, if you will. With the exception of hardcore slasher enthusiasts, I probably wouldn’t recommend it. But as a first stab at a bodycount horror, this particular bunny has laid out some promising eggs for us to discover. At the moment however, they’re hidden perhaps just a little too well.

The Night Before Easter is available from Vimeo to rent or buy as digital download just by clicking on this here link.