52 reviews
Average backwoods slasher
I'm a fan of backwoods slasher films such as The Forest and Don't Go In The Woods, so had to see this one. And since it was done by the same director as Cannibal Holocaust I was of course expecting something brutal and bloody. Well, it wasn't that bloody. But it was a fairly decent slasher. The focus is more on atmosphere than anything else, and there are some rather creepy moments especially in the old house in the woods. There are some good death scenes too, such as when one girl is looking in the mirror and suddenly a hand breaks through and kills her. There is quite a high body count (as the title would suggest) but sadly the deaths are just not gory or bloody enough. There's also the mystery of who the killer is...I never saw it coming.
Watch this if you're a fan of backwoods slashers or a general slasher fan, but don't expect anything special.
Watch this if you're a fan of backwoods slashers or a general slasher fan, but don't expect anything special.
Remarkably Unremarkable
What a relief to find out that Ruggero Deodato is a fallible human being after all. His teen slasher BODY COUNT is the perfect pill for anyone who might make the mistake of finding him to be maybe more than human. I've read comments from people saying he is a god, a genius, a bastard, and Satan, and my advice to any/all of those who feel that way is to watch this film.
It could have been made by anybody, with only the remarkable supporting cast of Italian cult movie favorites as the selling point: David Hess, Mimsey Farmer, Charles Napier, Ivan Rassimov, John Steiner -- these are heavyweight names, so what are they doing in a disposable, formulaic and ultimately silly teen slasher movie? The answer is making a living, which is exactly what Deodato was doing as well. I would imagine he was under contract to direct a movie that would have to sell and this was what he chose to do. Anyone who has seen any three slasher horror thrillers made since 1981 or so will have a fairly easy time figuring out what is going to happen next, and if like me you've developed a taste for slightly offbeat, lower budgeted examples of the form this will prove to be somewhat more interesting than most.
Besides it's cast the best thing the film has going for it is the use of locations -- one commenter has already identified much of it as Colorado, which may be the case but certain locations will be very, very familiar to anyone who has seen a Spaghetti Western or two. I recognized a waterfall location from THE GRAND DUEL, a field of boulders from DAYS OF VIOLENCE and some patches of woods from WHITE COMANCHE, so it looks like maybe they either filmed part of this in Spain or France in addition to Colorado and edited it all together to look like a seamless shoot.
Who knows. It's wonderful to see an actor like John Steiner with that hollow, unemotional deadpan alongside Ivan Rassimov scowling at a bunch of college nitwits who are about to be chopped to bits. Deodato does deliver some good gore sequences during the butchery and the film is replete with the nudity the genre calls for, but honestly it could have been directed by just about anyone with a feel for shot composition, has none of the crackling immediacy or controversial nature of CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST, and serves as a workmanlike effort by a director who has been hailed as some sort of a demigod or agent of the Devil, depending on your sentiment.
Nope, he's just a man, and as capable as anyone of making a routine, paint by the numbers movie that is of interest because he was the one that made it. How refreshingly stupid!
6/10
It could have been made by anybody, with only the remarkable supporting cast of Italian cult movie favorites as the selling point: David Hess, Mimsey Farmer, Charles Napier, Ivan Rassimov, John Steiner -- these are heavyweight names, so what are they doing in a disposable, formulaic and ultimately silly teen slasher movie? The answer is making a living, which is exactly what Deodato was doing as well. I would imagine he was under contract to direct a movie that would have to sell and this was what he chose to do. Anyone who has seen any three slasher horror thrillers made since 1981 or so will have a fairly easy time figuring out what is going to happen next, and if like me you've developed a taste for slightly offbeat, lower budgeted examples of the form this will prove to be somewhat more interesting than most.
Besides it's cast the best thing the film has going for it is the use of locations -- one commenter has already identified much of it as Colorado, which may be the case but certain locations will be very, very familiar to anyone who has seen a Spaghetti Western or two. I recognized a waterfall location from THE GRAND DUEL, a field of boulders from DAYS OF VIOLENCE and some patches of woods from WHITE COMANCHE, so it looks like maybe they either filmed part of this in Spain or France in addition to Colorado and edited it all together to look like a seamless shoot.
Who knows. It's wonderful to see an actor like John Steiner with that hollow, unemotional deadpan alongside Ivan Rassimov scowling at a bunch of college nitwits who are about to be chopped to bits. Deodato does deliver some good gore sequences during the butchery and the film is replete with the nudity the genre calls for, but honestly it could have been directed by just about anyone with a feel for shot composition, has none of the crackling immediacy or controversial nature of CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST, and serves as a workmanlike effort by a director who has been hailed as some sort of a demigod or agent of the Devil, depending on your sentiment.
Nope, he's just a man, and as capable as anyone of making a routine, paint by the numbers movie that is of interest because he was the one that made it. How refreshingly stupid!
6/10
- Steve_Nyland
- Jul 2, 2006
- Permalink
Another Sub-Product of Friday 13th
In a camping area, two groups of friends simultaneously arrive to spend some days and practice radical sports. One by one is killed by a Shaman, who has been threatening the area for fifteen years.
"Body Count" is another B-movie sub-product of "Friday 13th", full of naked women and having non-original deaths. Even the soundtrack, when the killer is arriving, recalls the one of Jason. Its greatest attraction is the name of the cult Italian director Ruggero Deodato. However, it is a cheesy and slasher movie, with a silly screenplay, some beautiful breasts and naked bodies, and recommended for fans of this director only. My vote is five.
Title (Brazil): "Contagem de Cadáveres" ("Body Count")
Obs: On 22 June 2008, I saw this movie again.
"Body Count" is another B-movie sub-product of "Friday 13th", full of naked women and having non-original deaths. Even the soundtrack, when the killer is arriving, recalls the one of Jason. Its greatest attraction is the name of the cult Italian director Ruggero Deodato. However, it is a cheesy and slasher movie, with a silly screenplay, some beautiful breasts and naked bodies, and recommended for fans of this director only. My vote is five.
Title (Brazil): "Contagem de Cadáveres" ("Body Count")
Obs: On 22 June 2008, I saw this movie again.
- claudio_carvalho
- Mar 6, 2005
- Permalink
Re-write-up of this Edam spectacular
I was lucky enough to find a totally uncut coverless copy of this enjoyable killer in the woods flick from a video-search agency on the Internet. Titled as 'The Eleventh Commandment' (what a brilliant name!), it included the 14 seconds of gore that were unfairly snipped from the runtime by the spoilsports over at the BBFC for the eighties UK 'Bodycount' print. The cuts were not waived for the recent budget disc release, although it would've easily passed through untouched, if Hollywood DVD had even bothered to submit the full version. Dapper Italian horror craftsman Ruggero Deodato directed it, but one could easily be fooled into believing that this was an all-American movie. Unlike Michele Soavi's similar Stage fright, which was filmed somewhere in Italy - trying to convince us it was the States, this was shot on location in the wilderness of Colorado with a mixed Italian-American cast. Deodato's previous claims to fame prior to this, were his controversial video-nasties from the early eighties - Cannibal Holocaust and The House on the edge of the Park. He has managed to work steadily throughout the years that followed, sticking mainly to television or genre pieces like Phantom of Death and The Washing Machine. He claims that soon he wishes to make a sequel to his Cannibal classic, which I for one would be interested in seeing. The Eleventh Commandment is little more than a shameless dupe of the Friday the 13th franchise, but succeeds mainly because of the director's flare for stylish horror film-making and a good sense of cheesy frolics.
It commences with quick cutting shots of desolate streets, which was reminiscent of Carpenter's closing for Halloween. Next we skip to a school basketball court where two teams are busy slugging it out under the watchful eye of the team doctor. His daughter, Rose, informs him that she's going to the campground with her boyfriend, Tom. We're pretty sure that they won't be returning when he warns her that she's got to be back before dark because '- those woods are dangerous!' After they've discussed their plans for a wedding (aaah, teenage angst!), Rose somewhat bizarrely, goes for a wander through the forest on her lonesome. She conveniently forgets her father's fateful warning, which makes her gory demise as imminent as the appearance of a masked killer with a handy blade. On her travels, she notices a cop's car abandoned by the roadside and walks on over to take a look at why it's been left so suspiciously parked. Hearing a strange sound from within the bushes, she heads over to investigate and discovers the devious glowing eyes of The Shaman staring back at her. (Lifted craftily from Suspira!) Local legend has it that The Shaman is a murderous demon, which was summoned by the ancient Indians to watch over the burial ground of their clan after they passed on over to the spirit world. He can't be too happy, because nowadays it's become a campsite reserved for randy teenagers, and we all know what psycho-killers think about those kinds of social gatherings, don't we!
Instead of sprinting for her life, the bushy haired female decides that it would be safer to climb in the car right in front of the killer (doh!). She soon changes her mind when a large knife slashes through the seat and just misses giving her a cack-handed heart bypass. The Shaman pursues her into the woodland, before she meets her maker whilst unwisely hiding in a tree-trunk. Tom hears the screams of his girlfriend and heads off into the forest looking for her, whilst at the same time, calling out things like, 'Rose are you putting me on?' (Putting you on what may I ask?). After a decidedly smart stunt from the maniac (more on that later), he eventually ends up with a blade through the larynx. Before the screen fades, we see that the murders were watched by a little Harry Potter look-alike who was pugged up in the trees holding a grubby teddy bear.
Fifteen years later, we meet a troupe of troublesome youngsters in a RV that are looking for somewhere to camp down for a while and commit the cardinal slasher sin of fun-fuelled debauchery. On their travels they bump into Ben (the sprogg from earlier) who's on leave from the army and returning home to his parents at the campground. He hitches a ride from the posse, and as return for the favour, he allows them to set up their camp in the woodland surrounding his home. Of course, this is a woefully bad move, because conveniently enough, Ben isn't the only ex-local to feel homesick enough to make a returning visit. Yes you guessed it, The Shaman has turned up for the party, with his friends: Mr. Axe, Mr. Butcher's knife and Mr. Hokey gore effects man! Let the debauchery begin
Deodato hired a supremely interesting ensemble of B-movie stars for this cheesy little rarity. Struggling faces included his old buddy David Hess - who had worked with him previously, John Steiner, Bruce Penhall, Mimsy Farmer and everyone's favourite tough as nails Southerner, Charles Napier. OK, so the youngsters were mostly desperate for a drama teacher, but hey, did I mention Charles Napier! The slaughter material is made up of all the typical characteristics that don't miss out any of the conventional ingredients. They're all mind-bogglingly dumb and the girls must be really dirty (not like that) too, because they seem to spend most of their screen time naked in the shower - or naked somewhere else! When they're not bathing in the nod or throwing buckets of water over each other whilst smiling profusely, they're being nastily dispatched by the old Indian shaman. This psycho-killer has had a right result with these victims however, because inexplicably enough they don't seem to notice when their numbers start to suspiciously dwindle. Even if they do come across mysterious occurrences, like the corpses of their friends stacked neatly in a corner, they're usually extremely lacking in the will to escape a gruesome fate anyway. At one point, a girl finds her boyfriend in a bloody mess on the floor and instead of escaping the wraith of her assailant, she proceeds to go and lie down on the nearest bed as if to say, 'I'm ready when you are Mr. Killer!' One guy meets his death after being 'scared' at the top of a mountain by the demon, who was probably only out for a stroll to buy a pack of fags and a paper. Judging by his snazzy loafers, he's a regular visitor to the local mall, which is an amazing accomplishment for a 'demon', don't ya think? The teen falls backward off the cliff, but must have visited a barber in-between loosing his grip and hitting the floor, because the body that rolls down the hill after the impact - has completely different coloured hair from the one that climbed up. (Was it that hard to find a blonde wig for the stunt 'double'?) His girlfriend, whom was waiting below, witnesses the incident but not what caused it. Does she go and check if her boyfriend's still alive or go and get some help for the poor old fella? Of course not, instead she decides to run to the bathhouse and wait for it begins taking off her clothes? Just what was it about that bathhouse and stripping?
Good IL' Mr. Nut-nut is probably the most prepared killer in the history of slasher movies. When he kills Rose at the beginning (the stunt that I said I'd come back to earlier), he manages to materialise a wig from out of nowhere that exactly matches the now defunct victim's hair. He then climbs inside the tree-trunk in record breaking time and manages to convince Tom that he's actually his girlfriend, so that he can re-align his Adam's apple. He's not only a vicious maniac; he's also a bloody genius! He should've used that impressive trick to conjure up a suitable hair piece for the stuntman that I told you about in the paragraph above, which would've helped the continuity no end. While we're talking about geniuses, Rose's father (the team doctor) was another probable candidate for the head of Mensa. He manages to describe word for word the murder of two teens from years earlier, without being anywhere near to the location at the time that they happened. Perhaps even stranger is the fact that the Sheriff that he tells his story too doesn't find his knowledge of the incident the slightest bit suspicious. So we've got a Doctor that must be a part-time clairvoyant, a cross-dressing killer that can switch his guise as quick as a chameleon and a rock-climber that can bleach his hair at the drop of a hat! Now no one can deny that these are elements that don't pop up regularly in your more common-a-garden two-a-penny slasher movies!
The gore scenes that were missing from the UK print are fun, but hardly nightmare inducing. There's certainly nothing to rival the 'sick bag at the ready stuff' that Cannibal Holocaust delivered so freely. One character has his fingers lopped off with an axe, but as I said, nothing was really that explicit. I guess that I've made The Eleventh Commandment sound pretty stupid, but to be honest, it's actually fairly engaging. Some of the flowing photography was brilliant as victims ran through the woods from the killer's pursuit and there's a fairly outlandish nightmare sequence that's quite impressive. Some of the murders manage to build a nice slice of suspense, and the night scenes utilize a competent use of smoke machines and an instantly recognisable score. Deodato even chucks in a twist that you may not see coming first time around, unless you've witnessed as many of these things as I have. In the beginning, each victim finds a grubby teddy bear somewhere before they're slaughtered. It was a neat touch that mysteriously disappeared halfway through the movie? It's a shame he never made more of the idea, because we don't even learn the toy's significance, and I myself am a great fan of those creepy little elements that help add a child's-like nightmare atmosphere to a horror film. You know - the use of dollies, mannequins or clowns - especially creepy clowns!
To be honest, this is a lot better than most of the Friday rip-offs that were made circa 1985, and deserves to be uncovered by those searching for a fairly enjoyable camp slaughter-thon. It manages to avoid feeling tired, despite its limitations, and there are tonnes of chuckles to be had at the silly shenanigans of the brash youngsters. I recommend The Eleventh Commandment as an entertaining alternative to fans that have seen Jason's Hockey mask one too many times, but are still wrapped up in their love for backwoods slashers. It doesn't break new ground or even make anything outstanding from the old, but it pushes the right buttons for just what you'd expect to find from a movie of its ilk. This was one of the first slasher movies I ever came across post-Halloween, and I was intrigued by the glaring tagline, which caught my teenage eye like a viewing of one of Pamela and Tommy's home movies. In the tradition of Halloween and Friday the 13th - now the woods are alive with the sounds of screaming Memories, memories
It commences with quick cutting shots of desolate streets, which was reminiscent of Carpenter's closing for Halloween. Next we skip to a school basketball court where two teams are busy slugging it out under the watchful eye of the team doctor. His daughter, Rose, informs him that she's going to the campground with her boyfriend, Tom. We're pretty sure that they won't be returning when he warns her that she's got to be back before dark because '- those woods are dangerous!' After they've discussed their plans for a wedding (aaah, teenage angst!), Rose somewhat bizarrely, goes for a wander through the forest on her lonesome. She conveniently forgets her father's fateful warning, which makes her gory demise as imminent as the appearance of a masked killer with a handy blade. On her travels, she notices a cop's car abandoned by the roadside and walks on over to take a look at why it's been left so suspiciously parked. Hearing a strange sound from within the bushes, she heads over to investigate and discovers the devious glowing eyes of The Shaman staring back at her. (Lifted craftily from Suspira!) Local legend has it that The Shaman is a murderous demon, which was summoned by the ancient Indians to watch over the burial ground of their clan after they passed on over to the spirit world. He can't be too happy, because nowadays it's become a campsite reserved for randy teenagers, and we all know what psycho-killers think about those kinds of social gatherings, don't we!
Instead of sprinting for her life, the bushy haired female decides that it would be safer to climb in the car right in front of the killer (doh!). She soon changes her mind when a large knife slashes through the seat and just misses giving her a cack-handed heart bypass. The Shaman pursues her into the woodland, before she meets her maker whilst unwisely hiding in a tree-trunk. Tom hears the screams of his girlfriend and heads off into the forest looking for her, whilst at the same time, calling out things like, 'Rose are you putting me on?' (Putting you on what may I ask?). After a decidedly smart stunt from the maniac (more on that later), he eventually ends up with a blade through the larynx. Before the screen fades, we see that the murders were watched by a little Harry Potter look-alike who was pugged up in the trees holding a grubby teddy bear.
Fifteen years later, we meet a troupe of troublesome youngsters in a RV that are looking for somewhere to camp down for a while and commit the cardinal slasher sin of fun-fuelled debauchery. On their travels they bump into Ben (the sprogg from earlier) who's on leave from the army and returning home to his parents at the campground. He hitches a ride from the posse, and as return for the favour, he allows them to set up their camp in the woodland surrounding his home. Of course, this is a woefully bad move, because conveniently enough, Ben isn't the only ex-local to feel homesick enough to make a returning visit. Yes you guessed it, The Shaman has turned up for the party, with his friends: Mr. Axe, Mr. Butcher's knife and Mr. Hokey gore effects man! Let the debauchery begin
Deodato hired a supremely interesting ensemble of B-movie stars for this cheesy little rarity. Struggling faces included his old buddy David Hess - who had worked with him previously, John Steiner, Bruce Penhall, Mimsy Farmer and everyone's favourite tough as nails Southerner, Charles Napier. OK, so the youngsters were mostly desperate for a drama teacher, but hey, did I mention Charles Napier! The slaughter material is made up of all the typical characteristics that don't miss out any of the conventional ingredients. They're all mind-bogglingly dumb and the girls must be really dirty (not like that) too, because they seem to spend most of their screen time naked in the shower - or naked somewhere else! When they're not bathing in the nod or throwing buckets of water over each other whilst smiling profusely, they're being nastily dispatched by the old Indian shaman. This psycho-killer has had a right result with these victims however, because inexplicably enough they don't seem to notice when their numbers start to suspiciously dwindle. Even if they do come across mysterious occurrences, like the corpses of their friends stacked neatly in a corner, they're usually extremely lacking in the will to escape a gruesome fate anyway. At one point, a girl finds her boyfriend in a bloody mess on the floor and instead of escaping the wraith of her assailant, she proceeds to go and lie down on the nearest bed as if to say, 'I'm ready when you are Mr. Killer!' One guy meets his death after being 'scared' at the top of a mountain by the demon, who was probably only out for a stroll to buy a pack of fags and a paper. Judging by his snazzy loafers, he's a regular visitor to the local mall, which is an amazing accomplishment for a 'demon', don't ya think? The teen falls backward off the cliff, but must have visited a barber in-between loosing his grip and hitting the floor, because the body that rolls down the hill after the impact - has completely different coloured hair from the one that climbed up. (Was it that hard to find a blonde wig for the stunt 'double'?) His girlfriend, whom was waiting below, witnesses the incident but not what caused it. Does she go and check if her boyfriend's still alive or go and get some help for the poor old fella? Of course not, instead she decides to run to the bathhouse and wait for it begins taking off her clothes? Just what was it about that bathhouse and stripping?
Good IL' Mr. Nut-nut is probably the most prepared killer in the history of slasher movies. When he kills Rose at the beginning (the stunt that I said I'd come back to earlier), he manages to materialise a wig from out of nowhere that exactly matches the now defunct victim's hair. He then climbs inside the tree-trunk in record breaking time and manages to convince Tom that he's actually his girlfriend, so that he can re-align his Adam's apple. He's not only a vicious maniac; he's also a bloody genius! He should've used that impressive trick to conjure up a suitable hair piece for the stuntman that I told you about in the paragraph above, which would've helped the continuity no end. While we're talking about geniuses, Rose's father (the team doctor) was another probable candidate for the head of Mensa. He manages to describe word for word the murder of two teens from years earlier, without being anywhere near to the location at the time that they happened. Perhaps even stranger is the fact that the Sheriff that he tells his story too doesn't find his knowledge of the incident the slightest bit suspicious. So we've got a Doctor that must be a part-time clairvoyant, a cross-dressing killer that can switch his guise as quick as a chameleon and a rock-climber that can bleach his hair at the drop of a hat! Now no one can deny that these are elements that don't pop up regularly in your more common-a-garden two-a-penny slasher movies!
The gore scenes that were missing from the UK print are fun, but hardly nightmare inducing. There's certainly nothing to rival the 'sick bag at the ready stuff' that Cannibal Holocaust delivered so freely. One character has his fingers lopped off with an axe, but as I said, nothing was really that explicit. I guess that I've made The Eleventh Commandment sound pretty stupid, but to be honest, it's actually fairly engaging. Some of the flowing photography was brilliant as victims ran through the woods from the killer's pursuit and there's a fairly outlandish nightmare sequence that's quite impressive. Some of the murders manage to build a nice slice of suspense, and the night scenes utilize a competent use of smoke machines and an instantly recognisable score. Deodato even chucks in a twist that you may not see coming first time around, unless you've witnessed as many of these things as I have. In the beginning, each victim finds a grubby teddy bear somewhere before they're slaughtered. It was a neat touch that mysteriously disappeared halfway through the movie? It's a shame he never made more of the idea, because we don't even learn the toy's significance, and I myself am a great fan of those creepy little elements that help add a child's-like nightmare atmosphere to a horror film. You know - the use of dollies, mannequins or clowns - especially creepy clowns!
To be honest, this is a lot better than most of the Friday rip-offs that were made circa 1985, and deserves to be uncovered by those searching for a fairly enjoyable camp slaughter-thon. It manages to avoid feeling tired, despite its limitations, and there are tonnes of chuckles to be had at the silly shenanigans of the brash youngsters. I recommend The Eleventh Commandment as an entertaining alternative to fans that have seen Jason's Hockey mask one too many times, but are still wrapped up in their love for backwoods slashers. It doesn't break new ground or even make anything outstanding from the old, but it pushes the right buttons for just what you'd expect to find from a movie of its ilk. This was one of the first slasher movies I ever came across post-Halloween, and I was intrigued by the glaring tagline, which caught my teenage eye like a viewing of one of Pamela and Tommy's home movies. In the tradition of Halloween and Friday the 13th - now the woods are alive with the sounds of screaming Memories, memories
- Kurwa-Monger
- Jun 19, 2004
- Permalink
a typical slasher
This a typical, formulaic, run-of-the-mill slasher movie from the mid-80s by a genre veteran ( Ruggero Deodato) who is known for his gross-out sensational jungle cannibals films ( CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST among others) of the late 70s. So I was expecting an over-the-top gory slasher with lots of body count but what I got is a routine slasher who has some decent moments but fails in delivering the goods in terms of bloodshed except for one or two enjoyable splatter sequences. There is nothing new here and it is rather dull but an interesting cast and the great soundtrack by Claudio Simonetti makes it a bearable ride if you don't expect too much.
Very Bad, But Standable
Well, Body Count is as average a slasher flick as it gets. It's not a bad movie (if you like 80's slashers) but in no way is it good. The movie takes place out in a forest campground (sound familiar) where two teens are killed. Skip about 15 years later. A group of kids (teens or college kids?) decide to take a camping trip and they pick up a hitchhiker on the way who just got out of the service. He tells them they can stay at his place with his parents. His parents place just happens to be in the same forest that those murders took place in. When they all get there they are given a hole hearted welcome from service boys father (David Hess). It turns out that David Hess is a little on the angry side and is setting up traps all over the forest for a local legend called "The Shaman". Can you guess what happens with the rest of the movie? If not, go back and watch Friday the 13th.
As stupid as this movie is, it is still stand-able. The main problems are the characters are so cliché and the storyline has been done a million times. Ruggero Deodato directed this movie (Cannibal Holocaust, Jungle Holocaust) and it is hard to tell whether he was making this movie cliché on purpose or whether he was actually trying to make something original. The gore isn't even that great in the movie except for may be three or four scenes.
Nonetheless, great score by Claudio Simonetti and look for David Hess, Charles Napier and Ivan Rassimov. They all do fairly decent parts in the movie. 5/10
As stupid as this movie is, it is still stand-able. The main problems are the characters are so cliché and the storyline has been done a million times. Ruggero Deodato directed this movie (Cannibal Holocaust, Jungle Holocaust) and it is hard to tell whether he was making this movie cliché on purpose or whether he was actually trying to make something original. The gore isn't even that great in the movie except for may be three or four scenes.
Nonetheless, great score by Claudio Simonetti and look for David Hess, Charles Napier and Ivan Rassimov. They all do fairly decent parts in the movie. 5/10
- CMRKeyboadist
- May 11, 2006
- Permalink
Could've Been Better
- gwnightscream
- Jun 4, 2020
- Permalink
Brutal slasher with good locations but marred by tons of stupidity.
I first saw this in the late 80's on a rented vhs.
As a kid in the 80s, the creepy vhs cover enticed me into renting this movie without any knowledge about the director. Revisted it recently.
The main problem in this flick is the sheer tons of stupidity n the rubber mask.
It does boasts of lots of horror veterans, Mimsy Farmer, John Stiener, Ivan Rassimov, David Hess, Bruce Penhall and Charles Napier.
The best thing going for Body Count is the location which is definitely one of the pulling factors. The mountainous woodlands are a sight to see and have a very alienating feel that tells you that you are never safe, no matter if its daylight or night. The mountain pass, the lake n the woods r serene but creepy cos of the desolation.
Most of the kills happen in broad daylight, which i am a fan of. I hate darkly lit scenes, flickering lights n shaking cam stuff.
When i saw this for the first time in the late 80s, i enjoyed the nudity n found the kills very brutal but didn't noticed the stupidities.
Lemme point out some stupid stuff:
1)A girl is attacked by a fella n later she finds her boyfriend covered in blood but rather than running straight out in the open, she lies down on a bed...
2) A girl witnesses her boyfriend tumble down a mountain but rather checking on him or running to a populated place, she enters an abandoned bathhouse n removes her clothes....
3) The killer manages to convince a dead girl's boyfriend by jus wearing a wig. How the killer got the wig, how the killer assumed that the dead girl's boyfriend wont be able to recognize the difference in the body is beyond me. To top it all, the boyfriend ain't able to differentiate between a man n a woman's body structure.....
4) A doctor is somehow able to tell a story about a murder so fluently as if he witnessed the incident. That too, the doc tells this story to a cop who looks completely lost.....
5) The toy's significance is a big wtf....
6) The husband is aware of the wife's infidelity but he goes on with his life n his wierd obsession with the shaman n traps....
7) As audiences we r never explained how many similar masks r readily available whenever the killer wants to strike n that too outta nowhere..
8) And what's with the growling sound....
It does boasts of lots of horror veterans, Mimsy Farmer, John Stiener, Ivan Rassimov, David Hess, Bruce Penhall and Charles Napier.
The best thing going for Body Count is the location which is definitely one of the pulling factors. The mountainous woodlands are a sight to see and have a very alienating feel that tells you that you are never safe, no matter if its daylight or night. The mountain pass, the lake n the woods r serene but creepy cos of the desolation.
Most of the kills happen in broad daylight, which i am a fan of. I hate darkly lit scenes, flickering lights n shaking cam stuff.
When i saw this for the first time in the late 80s, i enjoyed the nudity n found the kills very brutal but didn't noticed the stupidities.
Lemme point out some stupid stuff:
1)A girl is attacked by a fella n later she finds her boyfriend covered in blood but rather than running straight out in the open, she lies down on a bed...
2) A girl witnesses her boyfriend tumble down a mountain but rather checking on him or running to a populated place, she enters an abandoned bathhouse n removes her clothes....
3) The killer manages to convince a dead girl's boyfriend by jus wearing a wig. How the killer got the wig, how the killer assumed that the dead girl's boyfriend wont be able to recognize the difference in the body is beyond me. To top it all, the boyfriend ain't able to differentiate between a man n a woman's body structure.....
4) A doctor is somehow able to tell a story about a murder so fluently as if he witnessed the incident. That too, the doc tells this story to a cop who looks completely lost.....
5) The toy's significance is a big wtf....
6) The husband is aware of the wife's infidelity but he goes on with his life n his wierd obsession with the shaman n traps....
7) As audiences we r never explained how many similar masks r readily available whenever the killer wants to strike n that too outta nowhere..
8) And what's with the growling sound....
- Fella_shibby
- Mar 17, 2016
- Permalink
An Italian take on the Friday the 13th
To be honest I'm not the biggest fan of Deodato's films the only one I have seen apart from this was Cut and Run which I think is quite entertaining to watch. Right now Body Count sits with a 4.5 out of 10 so I expected it not to be very good. However I will say that what I got was something that wasn't amazing but proved to be a fun little slasher.
The film was released in 1986 about where the genre was starting to loose steam a bit but the genre was still going well in Italian with films like Michele Soavi debut film Stagefright which I believe is one of the most underrated slasher films. While I don't hold Body Count as highly I still believe it too is underrated but by no means a masterpiece.
The plot is basically like most slasher films. A bunch of young people will few brain cells decide to go to an old campground which years before had a wave of murders. The owner of the camp (played by David Hess) doesn't want them there but relents when there son turns up. As is expected the group gets picked off by the killer that seem to dominate every American back wood.
For starters the acting isn't great. David Hess and Mimsy Farmer who plays Hess's wife do a good job with the limited material but the actors playing are group of idiots aren't so great, they are just there to provide the killer with bodies for it to fulfill the movies title. And really they make the killers job so easy. Even when one of them turns up injured with his girlfriend missing they still stay at the camp and decide to act as if nothing is wrong, which leads to more of them being offed by the killer and still they don't really care. Great friends they are.
Now while the movie certainly lives up to its title, sadly it isn't as gory as you may think which I find kind of surprising considering that Deodato made the film as well as Cannibal Holocaust one of the most infamous films ever made that still brings up debates even today. But for some reason it seems he left all his fake blood in Italy. I'm not sure if he was doing this to get his film released in the states because a lot of slashers were usually quite bloody and this almost feels like a let down. But there are still some gory murders here and there as well a good deal of nudity so overall not bad just a little underwhelming.
Overall I don't think its a bad slasher film but not very good. I was satisfied with what I got, it had suspense, there were some good kills, there was great scenery and Claudio Simonetti score is simply brilliant and might actually be better than the movie. Despite it not being great I'm surprised that Arrow videos or 88 films haven't done a blu-ray of this yet. I own the uncut version but it is in 4:3 aspect ratio and the night scenes are hard to see. Hopefully this movie will soon get a much deserved Blu-ray release as it is a pretty decent slasher.
The film was released in 1986 about where the genre was starting to loose steam a bit but the genre was still going well in Italian with films like Michele Soavi debut film Stagefright which I believe is one of the most underrated slasher films. While I don't hold Body Count as highly I still believe it too is underrated but by no means a masterpiece.
The plot is basically like most slasher films. A bunch of young people will few brain cells decide to go to an old campground which years before had a wave of murders. The owner of the camp (played by David Hess) doesn't want them there but relents when there son turns up. As is expected the group gets picked off by the killer that seem to dominate every American back wood.
For starters the acting isn't great. David Hess and Mimsy Farmer who plays Hess's wife do a good job with the limited material but the actors playing are group of idiots aren't so great, they are just there to provide the killer with bodies for it to fulfill the movies title. And really they make the killers job so easy. Even when one of them turns up injured with his girlfriend missing they still stay at the camp and decide to act as if nothing is wrong, which leads to more of them being offed by the killer and still they don't really care. Great friends they are.
Now while the movie certainly lives up to its title, sadly it isn't as gory as you may think which I find kind of surprising considering that Deodato made the film as well as Cannibal Holocaust one of the most infamous films ever made that still brings up debates even today. But for some reason it seems he left all his fake blood in Italy. I'm not sure if he was doing this to get his film released in the states because a lot of slashers were usually quite bloody and this almost feels like a let down. But there are still some gory murders here and there as well a good deal of nudity so overall not bad just a little underwhelming.
Overall I don't think its a bad slasher film but not very good. I was satisfied with what I got, it had suspense, there were some good kills, there was great scenery and Claudio Simonetti score is simply brilliant and might actually be better than the movie. Despite it not being great I'm surprised that Arrow videos or 88 films haven't done a blu-ray of this yet. I own the uncut version but it is in 4:3 aspect ratio and the night scenes are hard to see. Hopefully this movie will soon get a much deserved Blu-ray release as it is a pretty decent slasher.
An enjoyable "slasher in the woods" movie from the master of exploitation
Ruggero Deodato's (the man that made the exploitation classic "Cannibal Holocaust") rather late entry into the 80's slasher genre is a rather enjoyable and atmospheric one. To sum up an extremely thin plot: a nasty Indian shaman is hacking and slashing his way through a group of horny, fun-loving teens on a campsite in the middle of the woods that happens to be built on an Indian burial ground. That is the complexity of the plot but for late 80's slasher does it need an in-depth plot?
To make up for the lack of story there is plenty of gory, vicious deaths (stabbings, axe to the face, throat impalements), a nice amount of nude women (and a naked fat guy), a creepy soundtrack and characters that I actually wanted to live. The cinematography is quite nice (the shots through the woods are especially excellent) and there are a bunch of famous horror veteran actors to fill the supporting cast. We have David Hess ("Last House on the Left", "The House on the Edge of the Park"), Ivan Rassimov ("Jungle Holocaust"), Charles Napier ("Beyond the Valley of the Dolls") and John Steiner ("Cut and Run", Deported Women of the SS Special Section"). This movie may not be his best venture into horror, it ain't got a very high rating here and it is definitely not the most memorable horror but as a slasher it is damn entertaining.
3/5
To make up for the lack of story there is plenty of gory, vicious deaths (stabbings, axe to the face, throat impalements), a nice amount of nude women (and a naked fat guy), a creepy soundtrack and characters that I actually wanted to live. The cinematography is quite nice (the shots through the woods are especially excellent) and there are a bunch of famous horror veteran actors to fill the supporting cast. We have David Hess ("Last House on the Left", "The House on the Edge of the Park"), Ivan Rassimov ("Jungle Holocaust"), Charles Napier ("Beyond the Valley of the Dolls") and John Steiner ("Cut and Run", Deported Women of the SS Special Section"). This movie may not be his best venture into horror, it ain't got a very high rating here and it is definitely not the most memorable horror but as a slasher it is damn entertaining.
3/5
- LoneWolfAndCub
- Jul 10, 2007
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Hardly Watchable
Italians allways been the master of ripping off succesfull Horror movies. Tntacoli, Demons, Behind the Door to Name a few. So why not make another slasher movie, as long the format still sells? Ruggero Deodato made one of my favorite Italian Horror films of all time, Cannibal Holocaust. It was a controversial, gritty, shocking and gory film that still ranks high on my list. This Fiday The 13th clone, on the other hand, is terrible. The biggest issue with Italian Horror, in my vision, is the dubbing. It is once more horrible in this one, and also the Soundtrack absolutely does not fit. The fact that the characters are hollow and one dimensional is forgiveable, nobody cares about them anyway. The gore is ok, but not at the level we see in other slashers from this era. One of the countless Halloween and Friday the 13th clones a lot of People will have forgot about. And nobody cares about that either. Skip and watch the classic Prowler!
My favorite Italian slasher
This not only is one if my favorite slashers but one of my favorite movies of all time and can't believe its not talked about as much as other horror classics. Its my fav Italian slasher and my 4th all time slasher only behind Halloween, Friday the 13th and My Bloody Valentine and just above Pieces.
Great Great Movie!
Great Great Movie!
- davidjameyjake
- Apr 28, 2021
- Permalink
So hilariously good.
The best thing's about this movie are the kills and filming location. The acting is so bad it's laugh out loud bad. Charles Napier is the standout in this movie and even he wasn't that good.
- treakle_1978
- May 8, 2020
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Horrible, but entertaining to a point
- douglas-a-espinosa
- Mar 8, 2022
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A surprisingly tame offering from exploitation king Deodato...
(**1/2 out of *****) For his first venture into straight slasher territory, Deodato (famous for the notorious gross-out classic "Cannibal Holocaust") pulls together an interesting, international cast of B-movie/genre film veterans, including David Hess ("Last House on the Left" and Deodato's "The House on the Edge of the Park"), Mimsy Farmer (Dario Argento's "Four Flies on Grey Velvet"), Ivan Rassimov (from Deodato's other cannibal `epic' "Jungle Holocaust"), John Steiner(Argento's "Tenebre" and Deodato's "Cut and Run") and Charles Napier (one of Hannibal's unfortunate guards in "Silence of the Lambs"). With Deodato directing and this unique cast (not to mention Claudio Simonetti of Italian group Goblin providing the soundtrack), I expected -- well, I don't exactly know what I expected, but what I got was a so-so thriller with some interesting ideas, a bit more plot than usual, and a few suspenseful chase and murder sequences here and there, but not a whole lot else. Hess and Farmer play a dysfunctional married couple who own a campground that was closed down after two kids were murdered by an `Indian shaman' killer. Well, it's fifteen years later, and the killings are starting all over again, and, coincidentally, an RV full of dumb teenagers (including the couple's traumatized son) just happens to show up for the onslaught. There's your typical horny stud who wants to screw all the girls, your typical prankster clown who you'd like to see get offed after about three minutes, your typical nympho babes who take showers every five or ten minutes, and the hit list goes on. Hess's character, while still decidedly mean and ugly, is at least not quite as despicable as the sadistic characters he played in the two afore-mentioned House movies. Deodato tries to make the identity of the killer a surprise, but it's still pretty much a no-brainer. Thanks to the "Friday the 13th" franchise, these killer-in-the-woods movies are the most prolific of the slasher genre.
HIGHLIGHT: Hess's and Farmer's son has a totally WHACKED-OUT dream with sexy severed legs, strangling tentacles, constricting nets -- it reminded me of some of the frat parties I went to in college.
HIGHLIGHT: Hess's and Farmer's son has a totally WHACKED-OUT dream with sexy severed legs, strangling tentacles, constricting nets -- it reminded me of some of the frat parties I went to in college.
awful holocaust
There was a time when directors had to take a lot of bad comments on their flicks. Sometimes directors really got into trouble by making explicit movies. Deodato is one of them. We all know him from Cannibal Holocaust. A flick not for the faint hearted. There is animal cruelty in it, killing real animals, there is the inmate impaled, there is the cutting off of a guy his dick all in view for the watchers, due the animal cruelty and the way the movie was filmed (handycam style like Blair Witch Project) people in those days thought that it all was real. So Deaodato had to run away from Italy avoiding a lynching. Weird. he will always be remembered for that cult gem. What I would like to say, Cannibal Holocaust is a gem, this one is an OOP, I can understand it, it is terrible. The acting is extremely low. The storyline is terrible, even that David Hess (Last House On The Left) is in it doesn't help the movie. Well Ruggero, you should better run away when you made this trash instead of running away for cannibal Holocaust, avoid this rubbish.
Going camping, always a bad idea in a horror movie...
Obviously, Italian director Ruggero Deodato was trying to get a piece of that successful "Friday The 13th" cake with this film. Let me mention right away that this movie indeed is worth seeing for the pretty gory deaths and the (lots of) female (and even male) nudity featured in it. Other than that, there is no reason to watch it. A bunch of stupid teenage characters with absolutely no background gets slaughtered in the woods. The legend goes that an old Indian Shamhain roams the woods. Naturally, it's a dude in a wrinkly mask. When you learn who the killer is near the end, and especially why he turned onto a killing spree (oooh, it's trauma-time once again!), I guarantee you will laugh. Charles Napier has absolutely nothing to do in this flick, except shagging Mimsy Farmer, who's on her terms cheating on David Hess, who himself is so obsessed over that Shamhain figure that I wondered why he didn't try to make love to it. When all is over and done with, the movie presents you its final freeze-frame shock-moment. That one made my day! An 80's slasher without that final frozen shock-shot simply isn't a true 80's slasher. Deodato at least learned that lesson.
- Vomitron_G
- May 19, 2010
- Permalink
Good location Good cast Dumb script
Not the worst slasher film but good cast and location and music. Just an awe fully written story line with zero flow. Too many holes and bad lines for the actors and actresses. Gee whiz. Kind of a waste but on the same hand worth watching for the nostalgia of 80's slasher flicks.
- willandcharlenebrown
- Aug 5, 2020
- Permalink
Good nudity and kills... that's an '80s slasher for you.
- alienlegend
- Apr 23, 2023
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Teenagers go camping and I bet you can guess what happens next.
- lost-in-limbo
- Jan 15, 2006
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body count rising
- rupert_burnham
- Oct 20, 2005
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Stick with the Cannibals, Ruggero...
Rugero Deodato, not particularly known for his subtle art of film-making (Cannibal Holocaust, anyone??), picks in on the popular 80's trend of slashers
Quickly produced horror films, preferably without a plot, in which horny and stupid looking teens are slaughtered by the dozen. For the vicious cult-director Deodato this is an excellent opportunity to brings as much repulsiveness to the screen as possible, so he introduces us to over 10 little lambs ready for the slaughter. The 'story' takes place in the Colorado woods where a group of friends (well, they're supposed to be friends but all they do is fight and cheat on each other) go camping and get butchered by a lame killer dressed up like an Indian Shaman. That concludes the highly intelligent plot
. This film is incredibly ugly to look at. There no tempo, the structure is one major mess and the characters say and do the stupidest things. For example: there's a scene where a girl discovers the mutilated corpse of her boyfriend inside a barn and, instead of running away, she lays herself down on a bed to cry what makes her a very easy new target. Haha! Like I said, this is an awful film
and yet it has some cult-value since it was made by Ruggero Deodato and it stars David Hess (the creep from 'Last House on the Left' and 'House on the Edge of the Park'), Mimsy Farmer ('Four flies on Grey Velvet', 'Autopsy'
) and Charles Napier ('Supervixens')
The cast as well as the multiple violent images make this film worth at least one look. Be advised though it's amazingly bad and almost unbearable to sit through.
The cast as well as the multiple violent images make this film worth at least one look. Be advised though it's amazingly bad and almost unbearable to sit through.
Ruggero Deodato's enjoyable entry in the popular 80's summercamp slasher genre
- Woodyanders
- Sep 30, 2006
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average Italian slasher
i was expecting a bit more from ruggero deodato.since he was the man who made the overrated cannibal holocaust i was expecting something a bit more extreme .another killer in the woods wearing a mask.sound familiar.there is not one thing original about this movie but how many Italian horror movies are original.a lot of the killings of the stupid teenagers take place off screen and that's a big let down.still there is some not bad gory killings to be seen but nothing you haven't seen before in any of the Friday the 13ths.but if you are a big Italian horror fan like me you will have to add this to your horror movie collection.
WOO!
- BandSAboutMovies
- Dec 27, 2018
- Permalink