Dark Sky Selects have released the Hatchet: The Complete Collection limited edition steel book, which is now available. And, as part of Spooky September, we at the Big Comic Page are reviewing each of Adam Green’s Hatchet movies.

As the first in the four-part series, Hatchet is as brutal as it is entertaining. This slasher movie has great characters, fun cameos, and the story takes has some surprising turns. Once the movie was over, I was ready for another rewatch. Green’s choice to hard cut to the credits after the final shot only adds to the already bleak ending.

Green’s story originally sets up friends Ben (Joel David Moore) and Marcus (Deon Richmond) in New Orleans at Mardi Gras to distract Ben from his recent breakup. Ben decides to take a haunted boat tour where we are introduced to the real lead of our movie. The shift is done so masterfully that I didn’t even realize it until the end of the movie.

Additionally, all the supporting characters are a delight, and Green gives them a lot of fun dialogue and manages to make you care about them. Many of them are cannon fodder; however, you don’t want them to be. At times, Hatchet seems more like an ensemble movie until our slasher begins to thin out the cast.

Horror icons Robert Englund, Joshua Leonard, and Tony Todd are included in cameo roles, but their presence in this movie isn’t so much a distraction but a welcome inclusion. Especially Todd’s Reverend Zombie as a business owner down on his luck.

The movie is simple. A boat tour gets stuck in the swamps of Louisiana, and the group finds themselves on Victor Crowley’s Island. The deformed, backwoods killer is said to be unkillable, searching for his father every night, and killing anyone who gets in his way. Plus, we get to see Kane Hodder flex his acting muscles playing Victor’s father in flashbacks.

The only complaint I have with Hatchet is the sound design. The speaking volume at times was almost inaudible (thank God for subtitles) whereas the jump scare musical cues and Marilyn Manson songs are obnoxiously loud. That said, composer Anthony Ritchie crafted an amazing, heart-pounding score.

Hatchet does pay homage to the slasher movies of the 70s and 80s while also bringing it into the 2000s. Green successfully adds another iconic slasher to the pantheon of recognizable horror movie baddies while also giving Hodder’s already legendary career another killer role.

Rating: 4.5/5.

I didn’t realize it at the time of watching the movie, but the behind the scenes reveal that the stars of the movie never get a good look at Kane Hodder as Victor Crowly and were actually terrified to shoot their scenes with him. Their fear of him does translate.

The set will also include two brand new bonus pieces, Hatchet: Swamp Tales and Production Journals. This bonus material is available exclusively with The Hatchet Complete Collection Limited Edition Steelbook. I highly recommend the Hatchet: Swamp Tales special feature. It’s a heartfelt conversation with the filmmaking team about the highs and lows of making the movie and is a must watch for aspiring filmmakers.

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The writer of this piece is: Laurence Almalvez
Laurence tweets from @IL1511

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