Rising to the height of its popularity in the 80’s with franchises like “Friday the 13th”, “A Nightmare on Elm Street”, “Halloween” and many others, the slasher genre has proven itself to be one of the most enduring sub-genres of horror.
Its popularity has of course ebbed and flowed with a resurgence in the 90’s thanks to the success of films like “Scream” and “I know what you did last summer” but the slasher genre has also seen more than its share of duds with filmmakers mistakingly believing that all that an audience expects from a slasher film is a killer in a mask and nubile flesh for him to dispatch.
It is the successful deconstruction of the slasher sub-genre in films like “Scream” and the less seen but equally clever “Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon” that have allowed the slasher film to evolve past the tropes that had begun to hold it back.
One new film that embraces, innovates and captures the true spirit of the slasher film is “Deer Camp 86’” and in this episode we are joined by three of the films stars, Jay J. Bidwell, Brian Michael Raetz and Josh Dominguez.
“Deer Camp 86’” is available now on blu-ray and streaming but I recommend you grab the blu-ray from our friends over at Cinema 1 and listen for a discount promo code during the episode.
We sat down to talk about what makes Deer Camp 86’ stand out from the slasher crowd and how the film begins and feels like one kind of film but ends up becoming something else altogether. Why steps forward in inclusiveness are vital to the future of horror. The challenges of shooting on location and building a rapport in an ensemble cast and why the director chose to use a pseudonym for his billing on the film.
So, pack your mosquito repellent and throw on your camo and let’s visit “Deer Camp 86”!
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