I'm a sucker for horror comedies. Movies that blend the scares and the laughs can be a lot of fun to watch with characters cracking wise while dealing with terrifying situations. Since both genres can deal with the outrageous and absurd, they tend to blend well together. But sometimes, despite having all the requisite pieces, it just doesn't quite work as well as it should. Unfortunately, Slaughterhouse Rulez would be one of those examples.
Don Wallace (played by Finn Cole) is transferring to the prestigious Slaughterhouse boarding school in Gloucestershire, England at the urging of his mum (played by Jo Hartley). Paired with the rebellious Willoughby Blake (played by Asa Butterfield), Don finds a school that follows a strict pecking order by house, of which has found himself on the lowest rung. Dominating over the students is Clegg (played by Tom Rhys Harries), the bullying school prefect that takes his styling and behavior cues from Draco Malfoy. It's not all bad for Don as he catches the eye of Clemsie (played by Hermoine Corfield). The school's headmaster, known as The Bat (played by Michael Sheen), informs the school that the woods are now off limits due to part of the school land being sold to a fracking company. Their house master is Meredith Houseman (played by Simon Pegg), a nebbish and ineffectual educator more focused on Cricket and bemoaning his girlfriend Audrey being overseas with Doctors Without Borders than his students. Things take a turn for the worse when the fracking creates a giant sinkhole that releases large subterranean monsters that begin to snack on the residents of the school, as well as some local protesters, led by a guy named Woody (played by Nick Frost). The social stature of the school is quickly discarded as the students find themselves in a fight for survival.
The film was directed by Crispian Mills from a script he co-wrote with Henry Fitzherbert. The resulting film is a mixed bag. The first half of the film is very much a oddball teen comedy with the assorted students of the school, but keeping the focus primarily on Don and Willoughby. There is a wonderful sub-plot as the Willoughby's history with his previous roommate is revealed as well as what happened to him that allowed a space to open up for Don to enroll. The school is also populated with assorted other colorful characters but it gets bogged down in the same tired teen romance and teen bully cliches we have seen before. The film does pick up steam again once the monsters finally show up roughly 45 minutes into the film. Once it does the film moves from set piece to set piece with a brisk pace and a solid sense of humor that made the second half some reasonably breezy monster mayhem fun. I just wish the film had found a better pacing for the story and better mixed the raunchy teen comedy elements with the monster movie bits so it felt a bit more consistent throughout.
One place where this movie does not slack is in the acting department. The cast is giving the film their all to try and make it work. Finn Cole is left with the straight guy role and manages it well, generally reacting to the insanity around him pretty much from the beginning when he lampshades the fact that the school is called "Slaughterhouse" and wonders why anyone would want to go there. Asa Butterfield has fun with his role as Willoughby and it's fun to see him play a more rebellious and mischievous character and step outside his usual type of role. Simon Pegg is clearly having fun playing his character, who is desperately missing his girlfriend Audrey and finding solace in Cricket while trying rather ineffectually to keep order in his house. Michael Sheen is clearly having a blast hamming it up as the school headmaster, making his grand entrance in flowing school robes like Snape on mescaline. He is an absolute hoot as he hams it up from beginning to end doing everything but literally gnawing on the scenery. Nick Frost pops up from time to time in the film as one of the protesters of the fracking operation on the school grounds, but also seems rather preoccupied with trying to sell the students he comes across drugs at the same time.
Overall, Slaughterhouse Rulez is a definite mixed bag. When it worked, I enjoyed it for it's spirited energy and game cast. But when it didn't work, it was a bit of a slog to get through, especially getting to the monster mayhem in the second half. It has it's moments and the movie sure is trying hard. It's entertaining in fits and starts but as a whole it's disappointingly underwhelming, which is a shame because I was really looking forward to this one.
The film was directed by Crispian Mills from a script he co-wrote with Henry Fitzherbert. The resulting film is a mixed bag. The first half of the film is very much a oddball teen comedy with the assorted students of the school, but keeping the focus primarily on Don and Willoughby. There is a wonderful sub-plot as the Willoughby's history with his previous roommate is revealed as well as what happened to him that allowed a space to open up for Don to enroll. The school is also populated with assorted other colorful characters but it gets bogged down in the same tired teen romance and teen bully cliches we have seen before. The film does pick up steam again once the monsters finally show up roughly 45 minutes into the film. Once it does the film moves from set piece to set piece with a brisk pace and a solid sense of humor that made the second half some reasonably breezy monster mayhem fun. I just wish the film had found a better pacing for the story and better mixed the raunchy teen comedy elements with the monster movie bits so it felt a bit more consistent throughout.
One place where this movie does not slack is in the acting department. The cast is giving the film their all to try and make it work. Finn Cole is left with the straight guy role and manages it well, generally reacting to the insanity around him pretty much from the beginning when he lampshades the fact that the school is called "Slaughterhouse" and wonders why anyone would want to go there. Asa Butterfield has fun with his role as Willoughby and it's fun to see him play a more rebellious and mischievous character and step outside his usual type of role. Simon Pegg is clearly having fun playing his character, who is desperately missing his girlfriend Audrey and finding solace in Cricket while trying rather ineffectually to keep order in his house. Michael Sheen is clearly having a blast hamming it up as the school headmaster, making his grand entrance in flowing school robes like Snape on mescaline. He is an absolute hoot as he hams it up from beginning to end doing everything but literally gnawing on the scenery. Nick Frost pops up from time to time in the film as one of the protesters of the fracking operation on the school grounds, but also seems rather preoccupied with trying to sell the students he comes across drugs at the same time.
Overall, Slaughterhouse Rulez is a definite mixed bag. When it worked, I enjoyed it for it's spirited energy and game cast. But when it didn't work, it was a bit of a slog to get through, especially getting to the monster mayhem in the second half. It has it's moments and the movie sure is trying hard. It's entertaining in fits and starts but as a whole it's disappointingly underwhelming, which is a shame because I was really looking forward to this one.
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