Film Review: "Muck"

Before I start with my review of “Muck”, I want to disclose that I recently contributed to the “Muck: Feast of St. Patrick” Kickstarter campaign back in December of last year, which enabled me to receive a digital copy of “Muck: Feast of St. Patrick” and the shooting script PDF and Blu-Ray of “Muck”.

I just want to let everyone reading this that this is my unbiased review of the film.

“Muck” is a film that has been hyped on major horror sites for the last year and finally being released through Anchor Bay Entertainment. The film is the middle part of a planned trilogy with the first and third films being shot at a later date. The film is about a group of friends who emerged from the dark marshes all bloodied and battered. They hide at a vacant vacation home in hopes of escaping. Soon they are going to find out that the nightmare isn’t over as something mysterious is still stalking them. Can they find a way out of this madness or will they end up dead as the people that they’ve been partying with earlier in the night.

“Muck” is a horror film that has been gathering my interest since hearing about this last year. The last time I could remember a horror film having this same interest was back when the first “Hatchet” film came out. I was worried in the beginning of the film that this was going to be a failure with it started, but thankfully this was a fun slasher film.

One of the things that I liked about this film was Steve Wolsh’s direction. One of the thing that makes it good was the fact that the action scenes had an intense and gory feel to it. It made the build up to it feel rewarding, as I thought it moved a little too slow at times between action sequences. It grabbed my interested in the film and kept it through the last half hour. The other thing that makes this good was the way that Wolsh directs his cast. I liked, the way that he makes sure that performances aren’t taken too seriously, as this gives the film a throwback vibe to cheesy 80’s horror films. It made the characters entertaining to watch and you’re interested in seeing what happens next.

Wolsh’s screenplay for the most part was good. I liked how he able to create some good action sequences. While this feels like a throwback film, the action scenes felt intense. From the way it was created to its execution, everything had an intense feel to it. It helps cover up some of the film’s flaws with how the story started as this makes me want to check out the upcoming prequel to this film. The only thing that I had a problem with was the fact some of the non-action scenes was a little too long. It’s a minor grip that I have with this film, as it hurt the flow of the film a little bit. It would’ve been nice if those scenes were trimmed down a little bit or cut. It would’ve helped the story move a little better but the payoff to the action scenes is what makes this an entertaining film that I can recommend.

“Muck” is a film that many people might not get right away with its structure and the fact that this is the middle film of a planned trilogy. But if you’re into bloody violence and intense action, this film delivers on its bloody mayhem and makes you interested in future installments.

Review Rating: Four Stars