Review for Offerings

(Originally posted on fight-evil.com)

*This is my first-time viewing of the film*

So, you all know me: if it's an 80's slasher, chances are high that I love the movie. And this late 80's addition to the genre is no different.

After a prank goes awry, those involved are slaughtered ten years later. Plot-wise, there's not much going on, and I thought it worked out just fine. This independent Oklahoma rip-off of Halloween was a lot of fun. It's low-budget, but has a lot of heart (think HauntedWeen, and this won't be the last time I make the comparison). The musical score is a complete copy of Halloween's, and the final twenty minutes (along with the fact the killer is mute, and just escaped from a mental institution) takes heavily from Halloween also.

Even so, there's some memorable stuff in here, from hammy acting to decent kills. While the gore was kept to a minimum, there was some decent blood during a few scenes (which is definitely one area where HauntedWeen one-ups this film).

The acting was about how you'd expect, but I got a kick out of it. Our main girl Gretchen (played by Loretta Leigh Bowman) did her part well, and was an attractive young lady to boot. We got two zany side-characters, one being a mortician's intern (played comically by Mark Massey - his only other role was in the SOV horror film The Ripper from 1985) and the other being Deputy Buddy (played by Barry Brown - his only other film being an early 90's crime/thriller, which, worth noting, is the only other film the director of this movie directed). Both were zany goodness with strong Oklahoma accents (which is a trait shared by almost every cast member, our lead girl with the most notable accent).

Perhaps my favorite character, though, is Sheriff Chism. He's a genial, nice guy, who actually tries his best to help the girls out. Really, Chism's a great character, and I had fun with him. The actor who portrayed him, G. Michael Smith, has only this single movie under his belt, which is a shame. Most likely, he's just a citizen of Oklahoma City (where this was filmed) who the director thought fit the role best, and boy, does he ever.

This movie had a few comedic scenes thrown in (including one juxtaposition near the end which I laughed aloud at), and overall, Offerings was a fun film. While lacking in the gore department, I got a kick out of this one, and while it might appeal purely to slasher fans of the bygone era, it's a movie I recommend. 7.5/10.