It would be easy to dismiss ROT: Reunion of Terror as just another low-budget slasher movie but I can't do so as it doesn't deliver the things fans of the sub-genre expect (mainly multiple deaths and naked girls) instead wanting to rely on its characters and twist ending to carry it. Which is all fine and dandy until you realize that: a) everyone's pretty much an asshole, b) the twist isn't nearly as inventive as the makers want you to believe, and c) everything is way too watered down.

After an opening sequence where a shady figure is vigorously cutting pictures out of his High School yearbook, obviously with revenge in mind considering he's pinning them to a cork board and is in a room lit only by a fireplace, we catch up with a pair of girls who are going to spend the weekend camping. Oh, and making out. When they decide to go for a dip in the lake wearing only their undies, they spot a house nearby and are quickly killed (one even gets a tent pole hammered through her mouth - the movie's best death) since the owner doesn't much care for trespassers.

This pre-credits sequence is pure stereotypical slice 'em up plotting and, it really has to say something, the most pleasing sequence in the entire movie. After the credits things settle down into a standard set-up as a group of twenty-something's are invited to a weekend reunion by one of their former classmates.

Amongst the group is former prom queen Amanda (Monique Barajas), comic relief redneck Jimmy (Christian Anderson), and a few other clichéd characters. Right from the get go I didn't care for them and that's simply because the script occupies itself with having them treat each other like shit and be short and snippy with each other - which grows tiresome. I'm not sure if that was intentional, so we're happy to see them killed, but even a slasher film needs somebody to root for.

Off everyone goes to the same cabin in the woods our lesbians bought it at and soon people start dying while the scripters try to write in some red herrings including the hitchhiker Jimmy picked up (who gave him a hand job pretty much out of the blue), the panty sniffing game warden (John Shumski), or the host of the reunion who's missing from the time they arrive.

In the hands of director/co-writer Michael A. Hoffman, Reunion of Terror doesn't really go anywhere fast with plenty of scenery padding and his reliance on slow-motion and quick cuts (including numerous, unnecessary, zoom ins on bear traps) bringing a sense of "ho-hum" to the proceedings. And when the movie does strap on the balls in the last fifteen minutes, it's pretty much a case of "too little, too late". The deaths are kept off-screen, nobody takes off their top, and that aforementioned twist is more silly than anything even if the film's official website dubs it to be 'controversial'.

Perhaps if Reunion of Terror had played out a bit more like it opens I would've enjoyed it more. It's a pretty good looking movie and certainly appears to have a bigger budget than the $140,000 amount mentioned during the commentary track and the unknown cast really doesn't do that badly it just wasn't able to do a heck of a lot for me on the entertainment level. It's playing it much too safe for its own good, which just makes the somewhat brutal finish feel more abrupt than shocking. (Chris Hartley, 1/26/09)

Directed By: Michael A. Hoffman.
Written By: Meghan Jones, Michael A. Hoffman, Bill Cassinelli.

Starring: Christian Anderson, L.J. O'Neal, Nori Jill Phillips, Hallie Bird.

Picture Ratio: 1.78:1 Widescreen.

Picture Quality: Shot with an HD digital camera the picture here is perfectly acceptable. The transfer isn't grainy and the clarity looks just fine adding to it's professional sheen.

Extras: There's a decent batch of stuff here as we get a trailer, a brief featurette on the musica score (they used three in total), a music video for the song "Faking the Deathwish" by D_Composure directed by Hoffman, a fairly humourous "Making Of" featurette than runs just over ten minutes, and a commentary track from Hoffman and co-writer Jones that makes for a breezy listen filled with jokes, talk of the film's erractic production schedule and some decent insight into making a low-budget film.

Visit the Official Movie Website for more info.