When I first started really using IMDb I used to think it a bit weird that Dante Tomaselli films got such low ratings. Long before I frequented this site I read praising reviews of each one on one of the other sites I use to feed my interest and always thought he was some kind of indie notable even without seeing his films, only to read the round disdain on here and be rather shaken. Actually watching them though, it all becomes clear. I don't mean this in a derogatory sense, but his films are very much an acquired taste even within the realms of low budget independent horror. Still, I liked his earlier Desecration and I like this one as well. Satan's Playground tells what one might think is among the most standard of stories, a family travelling through the woods suffer a breakdown, only to find in searching for help that bad, bad things await in the woods. At first a crazed matriarch and her retarded spawn seem the main problem, but there's more out there than that. What with a bunch of cultists and an unseen flying menace (clearly Evil Dead inspired) along with a crazy family and the whole lost in the woods paranoia bit, all or at least most of the backwoods terror bases are covered. The interesting thing is that other than a connection between said crazy matriarch and the flying beast (its the Jersey Devil and the classic mythology is referred to) there isn't really anything holding the assorted menaces together, its just a matter of this stretch of wood being infested with bad stuff and our luckless family lumbering into it all. Now one of the biggest criticisms of the film is that the characters act like morons. They do. In a film aiming for some kind of relative realism the character actions would be indefensible from a critical point of view but I don't think that is the intention here. Rather Satan's Playground seems an effort to be backwoods horror at its purest, all logic and realism, all the connective tissue of sanity and relatable decisions boiled away to fetid skeleton. Strange, unpleasant things happen and the cast is mindlessly drawn in because the film isn't about the characters but the horror show. In fact with the number of times people say "I'll be right back" or variants thereof, events seem a smiling embracement of clichéd illogic. Of course any claims about point or purpose will come down to whether you dig the style. For me, though Tomaselli is undoubtedly flawed as a writer he has a real flair as a director. Cool aerial shots, smart compositions, well dispersed jolts and the odd passage of suspense, its a well handled ride with virtual roller-coaster pace. I was reminded a little of House of 1000 Corpses and even The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre in the sense of gleeful insanity, though unfortunately also in the lack of gore. Like both of those films Satan's Playground really needed significant graphic punch, but it only achieves it once with a sweet throat slicing. Outside of that there isn't much bloodshed at all though, practically criminal as there are a few stabbings and lots of hammer blows to heads. Its a real shame as with more on screen nastiness this could have been a gem, but it just feels a bit defanged. At least the cast give their all, on the side of the angels Ellen Sandweiss and particularly Felissa Rose get put through a bit of a wringer and acquit themselves with compelling power. The villains are better though, Edwin Neal a creepy pleasure with his limited screen time as a creepy retard, Christie Sanford unsettling as his sister and veteran Irma St. Paul a blast in one of her last few roles as evil Mrs. Leeds. One of the more memorable crazed old ladies I've seen in a while, her doddery derangement is thoroughly watchable and even chilling. The sound design and scoring is on the money as well, creaks, cracks and cries effective and music of macabre lullabies, carnival mania and mournful drones. Its a classy package, but the aforementioned lack of gore really hurts it, as does absent character development and a somewhat weak close. Still, as a fan of weird low budget horror this one definitely satisfied my cravings, strong 6/10
Review of Satan's Playground
