Hack! (2007)

Wanting to raise their grades, a handful of college kids are randomly selected for a field trip to study wildlife, but don't get the chance as cliché horror film-style murders occur.

Director:

Matt Flynn

Writer:

Matt Flynn

Stars:

Danica McKellar, Jay Kenneth Johnson, William Forsythe

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Danica McKellar	...	Emily
Jay Kenneth Johnson	...	Johnny
William Forsythe	...	Willy
Sean Kanan	...	Vincent King
Juliet Landau	...	Mary Shelley
Justin Chon	...	Ricky
Travis Schuldt	...	Tim
Adrienne Frantz	...	Maddy
Gabrielle Richens	...	Sylvia
Noah Guy	...	Tatooed Keg Pumper
Kane Hodder	...	First Victim
Burt Young	...	J.T. Bates
Tony Burton	...	Sheriff Stoker
Won-G	...	Q (as Wondgy Bruny)
Mike Wittlin	...	Mr. Argento

Storyline

Seven college students, who make up of the bookish Emily; friendly bad-guy Johnny; punk girl Maddy; the token gay Ricky; gangster-rapper 'Q'; British exchange student Sylvia; and football stud Tim; are picked to travel to a private island owned by the reclusive Vincent King and his film-obsessed wife Mary Shelley to study island wildlife. But is isn't long when a mysterious killer begins killing the students one-by-one, and modeling them after gory murder scenes from numerous horror films. Are the eccentric Vincent and Mary Shelley the killers? if so, who is the mysterious fisherman lurking around the grounds of the island? Plus, does Emily know a lot more of what is going on then she claims to?

---

Plot Keywords:

island | college | falling in love | cult film | fishing boat | 

---

Taglines:

Reality Kills.

---

Genres:

Comedy | Horror

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong horror violence and gore, nudity, sexuality, language and drug use

Details

Official Sites:

Official soundtrack site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 December 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Chainsaw Slaughter

Filming Locations:

Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Autumn Entertainment, Smithfield Street Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

During the shots of Emily talking while supposedly moving at a moderate speed on the boat, it is obvious the boat is stationary as the water directly behind her is hardly moving.

---

Connections

Spoofs The Shining (1980)

User Reviews

Not as difficult to watch as the reviews would lead you to believe...

No, it's definitely a B-movie, but it has a few things going for it. First, it has decent production values and an acceptable look. This is not some film school project or extra-low budget screamer. Second, the plot, while rickety, is serviceable. Third, the acting (with the exception of two of the main characters) is really not bad. It's not great, but it's not the amateurish stuff that shows up in so many direct-to-video features nowadays. Fourth, the gore level (and nudity) is acceptably high.

The biggest problem with this film is a combination of the script and the direction. You just never feel like any of the characters could be real people. This is especially true of the college students. (As an aside, I might mention that I'm a cranky old guy who thinks that young whippersnappers have things too good and are being coddled to the point of absurdity. But it seems like whoever makes movies like this one thinks that all college students are complete and total sociopaths. In just about every movie I've seen recently that deals with college students, they are all just complete and total jerks. I'm beginning to feel sorry for them.) Anyway, it's hard to identify with the students/victims and that makes it difficult to get emotionally involved with their fear. Everybody in the film is just plastic.

Overall, though, watching this film is not a COMPLETELY terrible way to spend your time.