A group of campers find themselves in major hot water with a returning serial killer in this Scottish-made homage to Friday the 13th with a dash of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.

20 years ago, at the Redwood Farm, a farmer went insane and killed his entire family. In the present day, the Redwood Farm is now apparently abandoned. Five friends decide to take a camping trip and head to the Redwood Farm to see if the legend is in fact true. They consist of Pamela, Bruce, Pamela’s friend Kristy, her boyfriend Mark, and Mark’s ex Jessica. When Bruce never shows up, they find his cell phone and soon enough, things are about to get worse.

Jessica and Mark decide to look for Bruce and eventually, they disappear as well. Along with Bruce, Mark and Jessica find themselves in the farm, where a man in a burlap mask arrives and does his bidding. However, Kirsty believes that Mark is running off with Jessica when they disappear along with Bruce. Both soon learn enough that the nightmare is coming true as they reach the farm. In the midst of the chaos, Pamela discovers a deadly secret about the killer and now, she and anyone else she encounters must find a way to escape before its too late.

From the mind of David Ryan Keith comes this standard run of the mill horror film that is not so much a rip-off of classic horror films but more or less, an homage to two films in particular, Friday the 13th Part II and The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, all with the gore that has dominated horror films. It is as if we are watching a millennium version of an 80’s slasher and it’s not completely bad but could have used a few improvements.

The eclectic cast of characters all show different personalities. Lisa Cameron’s Pamela is the nice girl character who just wants to enjoy the trip. Lisa Livingstone’s character of Kristy is so annoying and if there is someone in this film I wouldn’t want dead more, it’s her. It may be understandable to see how she feels when her current boyfriend and ex-girlfriend search for the missing member of the group, but she takes it to a level of “just shut up already”. It is during the kidnapping scene of Bruce, Mark, and Jessica that we see the Chain Saw homage as we see our killer unchain Jessica and brings her in a room and the door slam a la Leatherface in TCM.

The kill scenes are pretty insane to watch. They really amp up on the gore factor. Not only do our campers fall prey to the killer, excellently played by Benjamin Selwyn, but we are also treated to the flashback scenes involving the crazed farmer as well as random bystanders ready to be chopped up as well. One kill that would possibly make Terrifier’s Art the Clown proud is that of the killer sawing off the top of a victim’s head using a hand saw!!! There are close ups of impact shots and buckets of blood coming out when it calls for it.

The Redwood Massacre may not have the best in terms of acting, and there is a very annoying character who you will want killed early. Nevertheless, it is a nice little homage to Friday the 13th Part II with a little dash of Texas Chain Saw Massacre from Scotland.

WFG RATING: C+

Uncork’d Entertainment presents a Clear Focus Movies production. Director: David Ryan Keith. Producers: David Ryan Keith and Lorraine Keith. Writer: David Ryan Keith. Cinematography: David Ryan Keith. Editing; David Ryan Keith.

Cast: Lisa Cameron, Mark Wood, Lisa Livingstone, Rebecca Wilkie, Adam Coutts, Benjamin Selway, Lee Hutcheon, Alec Westwood, Liam Matheson, Morgan Faith Keith, Claire Bearn, Jamie Butler, Cheryl Bernard.