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, Juliet Landau

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Danica McKellar	...	Emily
Jay Kenneth Johnson	...	Johnny
Juliet Landau	...	Mary Shelley
Tony Burton	...	Sheriff Stoker
Justin Chon	...	Ricky
Travis Schuldt	...	Tim
Mike Wittlin	...	Mr. Argento
Adrienne Frantz	...	Maddy
Gabrielle Richens	...	Sylvia
Burt Young	...	J.T. Bates
Noah Guy	...	Tatooed Keg Pumper
Sean Kanan	...	Vincent King
William Forsythe	...	Willy
Kane Hodder	...	First Victim
Won-G	...	'Q' (as Wondgy Bruny)

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?

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Plot Keywords:

island | college student | slasher | horror spoof | clown | 

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Taglines:

Reality Kills.

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Genres:

Comedy | Horror

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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:

Smithfield Street Productions, Autumn Entertainment, Autumn Film Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Last role for Tony Burton who died in 2016.

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Goofs

(at around 10 mins) 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. A scene lasting a minute, surely a mistake.

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Connections

References Frankenweenie (1984)

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Soundtracks

Oh No Not My Baby
(uncredited)
Written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King
Performed by Aretha Franklin
Played while Tim and Sylvia were on a blanket in a clearing in the woods

User Reviews

When in doubt, get the blood and boobies out!

Hack! is one of those tongue-in-cheek scary movies that thinks it's being original, witty and clever by referencing past horror classics and playing on the stereotypes and clichés of the genre, when in fact, nothing could be further from the truth: loading a film with exaggerated characters named after well-known horror icons, and having them make post-modern observations and spout self-conscious dialogue is not only a very stale routine, but in this particular case also somewhat insulting to its intended horror-savvy audience, to whom these nods to the movies they love will seem extremely obvious and rather irritating.

Fortunately, as tired and predictable as the format may be, the film does have its positives, in the very welcome form of juicy gore and tasty babes! Director Matt Flynn wisely sees fit to include plenty of splattery kills, including a bloody chainsaw attack, a gory hook through the eye, and a shotgun blast to the head, and the fine selection of hotties include one time Buffy vamp Juliet Landau, the stunning Gabrielle Richens (who happily gets her ample norks out), and Danica McKellar of The Wonder Years fame, who regrettably keeps her kit on, thus disappointing the legion of pervs who always wondered what a grown up Winnie might look like in the buff.

Throw in a creepy clown, killers dressed in Japanese costume for absolutely no reason, and a pool of piranha, and what you have is a very cheesy, non-essential popcorn flick that won't win any awards for originality, but which is just about daft enough, sexy enough and silly enough for it to still warrant a watch.