Cast:
Patrick Dempsey (Sheriff Eric Newlon), Nell Verlaque (Jessica), Addison Rae (Gabby), Jalen Thomas Brooks (Bobby), Milo Manheim (Ryan), Rick Hoffman (Thomas Wright), Gina Gershon (Amanda Collins), Tomaso Sanelli (Evan), Gabriel Davenport (Scuba), Jenna Warren (Yulia), Karen Cliche (Kathleen), and Jeff Teravainen (Deputy Bret Labelle) Directed by Eli Roth (#2117 - Cabin Fever)
Review:
"We said, 'Let's pretend Thanksgiving was a movie from 1980 that was so offensive that every print was destroyed. All the scripts were burned. The director disappeared. The crew members changed their names. One person saved the trailer and uploaded it to the darkest corners of 4chan, and now it's made it out. So this is a 2023 reboot.' Once we said that, it freed us up."
Remember Grindhouse? That was the double feature extravaganza (Robert Rodriguez's Planet Terror and Quentin Tarantino's Death Proof) that had a handful of "fake trailers" that were shown before each film. These included the following: Machete (done by Rodriguez), Werewolf Women of the SS (done by Rob Zombie), Don't (done by Edgar Wright), Thanksgiving (done by Eli Roth), and for a good chunk of Canadians, Hobo with a Shotgun (as directed by Jason Eisener). The trailer for Roth's creation showed a setting of Plymouth, Massachusetts with a turkey mascot that gets his head cut off by a guy dressed up as a pilgrim to go with a stunt of a cheerleader being on a trampoline before being cut by a knife. Funny enough, this is now the third of those five "fake trailers" to lead to its own film adaptation, compete with Roth as director here for an R-rated film released in November. Roth and Jeff Rendell (who had played the Pilgrim in the trailer) were huge slasher fans and had wanted to do something involving Thanksgiving and Massachusetts. Of course, the 2007 trailer was the best avenue for shooting just the "best parts" when it came to nudity or gore, but the film is its own thing. Now you have a film where the killer wears the mask of John Carver, who actually was a pioneer involved with the Mayflower voyage in 1620 which resulted in the creation of Plymouth Colony in America. Never let me say I don't try to deliver some sort of interesting notes to look further into on Movie Night.
I enjoyed the film pretty well. It has over-the-top gore and an evident appreciation for the slasher films of the past that would be just fun to put on the holidays just in the same way one might watch New Year's Evil (1980). Sure, there are a handful of previous Thanksgiving slasher films in Home Sweet Home (1981), Blood Rage (1987), and even ThanksKilling (2009), but it is nice to have one that leans in with no hesitation in mayhem here. Some of the stuff for the trailer is done here for the film to go with a handful of other death sequences that might inspire a chuckle. You have a killer that sees a cat after committing the deed that decides the cat must be fed cat food before the scene ends. The film opens where else but a supermarket on Black Friday, because that is how you make an interesting setup: show people at their exaggerated weirdness. Technically, I can't say I've had a Black Friday shopping experience on any of those levels (waiting early to buy things is boring), but I appreciate the time taken to set up mayhem and motivation for whoever may decide revenge is necessary afterwards. Verlaque makes a solid lead to follow in the midst of a group of general one-type people that, well, are set up for you know what. At least they are amusing in the setup to get them in chaos, such as the livestreaming jock in Sanelli or the totally mysterious Brooks that makes for probably the most middle of triangles with Verlaque and Manheim. As long as you make the folks who you know are going to get it seem ripe enough for doom, you've got something neat on the hands. This includes a very large oven and a target practically set up for splatter. Dempsey and Hoffman make quality support among the adults at play in trying to figure out what makes the most sense in dealing with a man in a mask that only speaks near the end and likes public shaming. The eventual reveal at least doesn't stretch credibility when it comes to motivations or eventual outcomes, even with a bit of second -guessing thrown in there. I think I could have done with the final shot of the film, really. You could argue that hey, would-be bait/mess-with-the-audience ideas is fine if you like the film, but sometimes one really should let things lie. Regardless, I enjoyed the mayhem executed by Roth and company for a mostly interesting time spent with slasher tropes that doesn't test one's patience or leave one malnourished for what you would hope from a horror film in theatrical release.
Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.
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