Slayer is a mindless vampire movie with a few twists on an ancient plot. Special ops team is sent into south America to hunt down blood sucking natives. Their leader is a real old man who has aged well. There's an environmental twist as the vampires are attacking villages because their rain forest and old diet of wild animals is disappearing because of the greedy corporations and farmers. Lost of fighting and so much blood they just never bothered to wash off the cast for the whole film. It looks like they slept in the bloody clothes and caked on blood. While each member of the cast brought their own talents, it really didn't all click as a film. The effects were OK, except for the vampires dangling from the buildings on wires. If you're looking for lots of blood and violence, this is for you.
24 Reviews
Yup, typical Sci-Fi Channel Original Production
gtc839 July 2006
Warning: Spoilers
This is about some vampires (who can run around out in the sunlight), that are causing some problems down in South America. Casper Van Dien is sent in with his team of commandos to investigate. The movie opens with Van Dien & Co. walking through the jungle, and there's this huge black guy who just absolutely, positively cannot act. He speaks all his lines as if he's reading them off the cue-cards for the very first time. His voice is also so low that, well, it's positively hilarious. Great way to get the movie started! Anyhow, they run into some of our vampires, shoot them (this causes them to appear to die for about 20 seconds), and then of course they come back to life. Van Dien notices that one of them was impaled across a tree limb, and yells to his buddies to kill them with wood. The stunt work must be seen to be believed - the vampires are on wires that pull them up trees, which is supposed to make them look like they can climb really easily, but it just makes them look like they're bouncing around on bungee cords or something.
Yeah...anyhow, later on, the huge black dude is down in South America with some guys (Van Dien not included), and they're attacked by more vampires. It's really too bad these guys never heard of a crossbow, because it would seem to be the perfect weapon to kill the little bloodsuckers with, but instead they use big old wooden stakes that they try to impale the vampires with by hand. The big black dude ends up getting captured and he eventually becomes some big powerful vampire leader. Van Dien ends up battling him later on. It doesn't help that all through the movie, everyone forgets that if you shoot a vampire, they are knocked out for 20 seconds or so, which would enable a person to stick a stake in them fairly easily. They just try to stick stakes in them in the middle of hand-to-hand combat. Yeah, not exactly brilliant tactics.
There's a hot babe (remember Veronica from The Lost World TV show? Yes, it's her!) who also happens to be walking around in the middle of Vampire County on some sort of research mission, and she also just happens to be Van Dien's ex-wife. Hey, what are the odds? It's a shame she's not in the movie a whole lot more than she is. Will her and Casper get back together in the end? Will Van Dien defeat the huge black dude who can't act? Will the circus performer vampires make you laugh through all the numerous action scenes? Will we hear the three stooges music when somebody does something funny? Has even Lynda Carter forgotten how to act in her small cameo (she's more convincing in her Sleep Number Bed commercials)? These questions and more will will be answered if you make it all the way to the end of the movie.
I don't know, it might score some points on the so bad it's good scale, but that's about it. Eh, it's a bunch of goofs running around in the jungle, I guess it's kind of entertaining.
Yeah...anyhow, later on, the huge black dude is down in South America with some guys (Van Dien not included), and they're attacked by more vampires. It's really too bad these guys never heard of a crossbow, because it would seem to be the perfect weapon to kill the little bloodsuckers with, but instead they use big old wooden stakes that they try to impale the vampires with by hand. The big black dude ends up getting captured and he eventually becomes some big powerful vampire leader. Van Dien ends up battling him later on. It doesn't help that all through the movie, everyone forgets that if you shoot a vampire, they are knocked out for 20 seconds or so, which would enable a person to stick a stake in them fairly easily. They just try to stick stakes in them in the middle of hand-to-hand combat. Yeah, not exactly brilliant tactics.
There's a hot babe (remember Veronica from The Lost World TV show? Yes, it's her!) who also happens to be walking around in the middle of Vampire County on some sort of research mission, and she also just happens to be Van Dien's ex-wife. Hey, what are the odds? It's a shame she's not in the movie a whole lot more than she is. Will her and Casper get back together in the end? Will Van Dien defeat the huge black dude who can't act? Will the circus performer vampires make you laugh through all the numerous action scenes? Will we hear the three stooges music when somebody does something funny? Has even Lynda Carter forgotten how to act in her small cameo (she's more convincing in her Sleep Number Bed commercials)? These questions and more will will be answered if you make it all the way to the end of the movie.
I don't know, it might score some points on the so bad it's good scale, but that's about it. Eh, it's a bunch of goofs running around in the jungle, I guess it's kind of entertaining.
DayWalkers and Wonder Woman
amberbaer9 July 2006
Warning: Spoilers
While waiting for the show to begin - I decided to DVD it and watch it without the annoying commericals from the SCI FI channel - sad part is...the commercials tend to have better dialog, better casting, and better acting at times - and that's even fast-forwarding through them! While Lynda Carter looks fantastic as always - I just could not stop laughing at the dialog she was given to read. "I've been her godmother longer than she's been your ex-wife." While I adore Lynda, she must have been paid quite well for the few minutes of screen time she was given.
Casper - relegated to TV movies, and does them as serious work! You gotta love him for that alone (case in point - CURSE OF KING TUTS TOMB)! The plot is basic - "creatures" aka vampires are running around South America, Casper's ex-wife is in the jungle doing a bad version of MEDICINE MAN with the locals, and Wonder God Mother sends Casper and his soldier friends down to help out an old buddy who encountered the Vampires with him at the beginning of the movie...
Thank heaven's the wires were not seen during the cheesy special effects shots of juggling vampires tossing a grandmother around and then eating her - it was just funny enough to keep me from peeing myself, but laughable enough to make me fall out of my chair.
The writer, director, editor, producer is all one person with a bad case of multiple personality disorder when it comes to each of the jobs needed to make this piece of refried pseudo-scifi garbage.
It's so bad that I have to recommend that you see it - just so you can warn others about it.
p.s. If you speak Spanish - you will be highly offended at the weak attempts to use it as a 2nd dialog....es muy mal~!
Casper - relegated to TV movies, and does them as serious work! You gotta love him for that alone (case in point - CURSE OF KING TUTS TOMB)! The plot is basic - "creatures" aka vampires are running around South America, Casper's ex-wife is in the jungle doing a bad version of MEDICINE MAN with the locals, and Wonder God Mother sends Casper and his soldier friends down to help out an old buddy who encountered the Vampires with him at the beginning of the movie...
Thank heaven's the wires were not seen during the cheesy special effects shots of juggling vampires tossing a grandmother around and then eating her - it was just funny enough to keep me from peeing myself, but laughable enough to make me fall out of my chair.
The writer, director, editor, producer is all one person with a bad case of multiple personality disorder when it comes to each of the jobs needed to make this piece of refried pseudo-scifi garbage.
It's so bad that I have to recommend that you see it - just so you can warn others about it.
p.s. If you speak Spanish - you will be highly offended at the weak attempts to use it as a 2nd dialog....es muy mal~!
A horrid abomination of crapness!
kevinxirau23 August 2012
A film that deserves to be thrown into the bowls of hell, Slayer takes what we know about vampires and turns it upside down into the crap stain of cinema. How can this thing even exist? I swear, just watching a few minutes of this...film... is enough to put you in a diabetic coma.
Okay, so the basic plot to Slayer is that a bunch of soldiers encounter vampires in the tropics and naturally battle them to the death. It's kinda like "Dog Soldiers" except far more stupid. At least "Dog Soldiers" was pretty cool for a low-budget film but this looks like it has been done with much less money and effort. On top of that, it breaks so many traditional rules to vampires that it insults the blood-sucking genre. The vampires are ridiculous and a select few are incredibly annoying. The terrible acting doesn't help that much either, even coming from the likes of Casper Van Dien.
This movie makes "Mega Shark vs Giant Octopus" look like a masterpiece (a more interesting one at that) and "Dracula 3000" more dignified. I'll add insult to injury by not giving Slayer any remote bit of credit or rating. Yeah, that's how bad it really is. Every copy of this must be destroyed, erased from existence. By NOT watching this, you'll save yourself a few hours of your precious life. Slayer, the parasite of the world of cinema. Thank you and good night!
Okay, so the basic plot to Slayer is that a bunch of soldiers encounter vampires in the tropics and naturally battle them to the death. It's kinda like "Dog Soldiers" except far more stupid. At least "Dog Soldiers" was pretty cool for a low-budget film but this looks like it has been done with much less money and effort. On top of that, it breaks so many traditional rules to vampires that it insults the blood-sucking genre. The vampires are ridiculous and a select few are incredibly annoying. The terrible acting doesn't help that much either, even coming from the likes of Casper Van Dien.
This movie makes "Mega Shark vs Giant Octopus" look like a masterpiece (a more interesting one at that) and "Dracula 3000" more dignified. I'll add insult to injury by not giving Slayer any remote bit of credit or rating. Yeah, that's how bad it really is. Every copy of this must be destroyed, erased from existence. By NOT watching this, you'll save yourself a few hours of your precious life. Slayer, the parasite of the world of cinema. Thank you and good night!
Watch it if you have nothing better to do.
k012957-124 November 2006
Warning: Spoilers
This is a relatively watchable movie (+1). After watching UKM: Ultimate Killing Machine, this one looks good, in comparison. There are no obvious technical gaffes, although the vampiric teeth look odd.
The story line makes no sense. Let's see. An American GI fights vampires. Comes back to the states and is rehabilitated for seeing... Vampires. His commanding officer is the aunt of his ex-wife. Who happens to be doing some research on the biodiversity of the South American area where the vampires are. Huh! Don't pile on too many coincidences. Who cares about the head vampire? Or, his daughter? Or, any one in this film? The only originality in this is that most of the myths about vampires (allergic to crosses and garlic, can't come out in the day, etc.) are wrong. But, they can't be killed except by beheading or a wood wound in the heart. Yeah, right. It's obvious they just didn't want to film a dark movie, since this is a made for TV film.
It would have been nice for the viewer, if they had hired some actors. Oh, they've got Lynda Carter (TV's Wonder Woman), and a big, black dude with a tremendously deep voice, who snarls appropriately in order to show off his vampire teeth prosthetics. But, otherwise, you would never know they had actually paid people to read these lines.
There is more than enough fight scenes, and some vampire-biting-neck blood, but no real violence.
The story line makes no sense. Let's see. An American GI fights vampires. Comes back to the states and is rehabilitated for seeing... Vampires. His commanding officer is the aunt of his ex-wife. Who happens to be doing some research on the biodiversity of the South American area where the vampires are. Huh! Don't pile on too many coincidences. Who cares about the head vampire? Or, his daughter? Or, any one in this film? The only originality in this is that most of the myths about vampires (allergic to crosses and garlic, can't come out in the day, etc.) are wrong. But, they can't be killed except by beheading or a wood wound in the heart. Yeah, right. It's obvious they just didn't want to film a dark movie, since this is a made for TV film.
It would have been nice for the viewer, if they had hired some actors. Oh, they've got Lynda Carter (TV's Wonder Woman), and a big, black dude with a tremendously deep voice, who snarls appropriately in order to show off his vampire teeth prosthetics. But, otherwise, you would never know they had actually paid people to read these lines.
There is more than enough fight scenes, and some vampire-biting-neck blood, but no real violence.
Man I miss Buffy
juliankennedy2317 December 2006
Warning: Spoilers
Slayer: 5 out of 10: Okay a Sci-fi original film staring B-movie maven Casper Van Dien? How good can it be? Well at least it's no Raptor Island or Chupacabra Terror (Thank the good lord above).
Actually for an original Sci-fi channel film this isn't half bad. Well at least the first half isn't.
The film starts Predator style with a team of marines in the Amazon battling vampires that aren't affected by sunlight and rip old ladies in half. (Actually the best scene in the movie.) Yes I know they jump around like Circus de Soleil rejects and somehow the Russian twin acrobats from Octopussy got bit and wandered into South America.
Anyhow the team gets back to the states and Linda Carter (Yes Wonder Woman is in this film and no she still can't act) sends Van Dien back to the jungle with a new team (the last one didn't do so well) to kill the vampires and rescue his ex-wife. (No one actually cares that the natives are being slaughtered but one lost blond woman and the marines are called out).
The vampires are now lead by Van Diem's second in command (Kevin Grevioux at his gravelly voiced over-sized best) and are using military tactics. This is surprising since the fight scenes actually become less effective.
The movies continuity also takes a large hit in the second half as characters apparently are using a Star Trek transporter to get from one location to another (Prepare to be disoriented) The less said about the pathetic ending monster the better (except it reminded me of Raptor Island and Chupacabra Terror).
One last note to the screenwriter. If the bad guy is going to have a flowery speech about how encroaching civilization is causing the vampires to attack perhaps it would be wise to show something (an idle bulldozer or maybe some condos going up on the river) at any point during the film to make the PC speech less laughable.
Actually for an original Sci-fi channel film this isn't half bad. Well at least the first half isn't.
The film starts Predator style with a team of marines in the Amazon battling vampires that aren't affected by sunlight and rip old ladies in half. (Actually the best scene in the movie.) Yes I know they jump around like Circus de Soleil rejects and somehow the Russian twin acrobats from Octopussy got bit and wandered into South America.
Anyhow the team gets back to the states and Linda Carter (Yes Wonder Woman is in this film and no she still can't act) sends Van Dien back to the jungle with a new team (the last one didn't do so well) to kill the vampires and rescue his ex-wife. (No one actually cares that the natives are being slaughtered but one lost blond woman and the marines are called out).
The vampires are now lead by Van Diem's second in command (Kevin Grevioux at his gravelly voiced over-sized best) and are using military tactics. This is surprising since the fight scenes actually become less effective.
The movies continuity also takes a large hit in the second half as characters apparently are using a Star Trek transporter to get from one location to another (Prepare to be disoriented) The less said about the pathetic ending monster the better (except it reminded me of Raptor Island and Chupacabra Terror).
One last note to the screenwriter. If the bad guy is going to have a flowery speech about how encroaching civilization is causing the vampires to attack perhaps it would be wise to show something (an idle bulldozer or maybe some condos going up on the river) at any point during the film to make the PC speech less laughable.
No Old World Counts Among These Vampires
bkoganbing15 July 2006
Warning: Spoilers
Call me old fashioned, but when I think of vampires I'm thinking Bela Lugosi, formal dress and cape, old world manners and a menace in his voice.
These vampires have existed deep in the South American jungle for centuries, but now they seem to be getting good and organized. Making converts too, but not just any converts. There's a head vampire out there who's very selective about who he is recruiting. He's glad that there are some U.S. Army Soldiers now looking for them in the jungle.
Casper Van Dien a couple of generations back would have made a great action hero on the big screen. He's at his best playing the uncomplicated hero. But we're a bit to sophisticated for that so he's relegated to these made for TV epics. I suppose it was his good or bad luck depending on how you look at it to appear in that classic Starship Troopers. It seems to have typecast him for science fiction as well.
Since Van Dien almost went into the military as a career, he certainly does look and feel the part of an army captain. The other really good performance here is by Kevin Gieroux as Van Dien's friend who the vampires get and turn.
No children of the night here, this crowd of vampires makes no music.
These vampires have existed deep in the South American jungle for centuries, but now they seem to be getting good and organized. Making converts too, but not just any converts. There's a head vampire out there who's very selective about who he is recruiting. He's glad that there are some U.S. Army Soldiers now looking for them in the jungle.
Casper Van Dien a couple of generations back would have made a great action hero on the big screen. He's at his best playing the uncomplicated hero. But we're a bit to sophisticated for that so he's relegated to these made for TV epics. I suppose it was his good or bad luck depending on how you look at it to appear in that classic Starship Troopers. It seems to have typecast him for science fiction as well.
Since Van Dien almost went into the military as a career, he certainly does look and feel the part of an army captain. The other really good performance here is by Kevin Gieroux as Van Dien's friend who the vampires get and turn.
No children of the night here, this crowd of vampires makes no music.
Doesn't cut it.
TdSmth526 July 2007
I like vampire movies, I like B-movies, I love B vampire movies. But this one has nearly nothing going for it. Some of the acting is horrible, especially by 3 of the male leads. The story is not particular interesting. At a relative short 88 minutes it still seems too long and you'll find yourself fast-forwarding quite a bit. There are an awful lot of kung-fu vampire attacks. Sound cool? It isn't when it's done on a low budget. It gets repetitive very quickly. There is some minor blood and gore, nothing to get excited about. There some good wire work where you can see the wires. It has some good landscapes being filmed in Puerto Rico.
Not worth the rental
Not worth the rental
Wasn't there a band named Slayer?
Aaron137520 March 2007
I suggest that in the future, any movie made by the Sci fi channel and subsequently released on DVD must say that it was indeed made by such channel as I would not buy this stuff if I had known this fact. Not that this was all bad, but when you have fade out for commercials in the middle of your movie it just ruins the flow of said film. This in turn makes the movie rather more boring. This one had an interesting story however the light hearted and extremely generic soundtrack distracted one from the film as did most of the bad actors with the exception of Dien and Linda Carter. The story, vampires are on the attack in South America, of course the rules of vampire movies are not in effect, which the usually aren't in any of the movies about vampires I have seen lately with the exception of the Blade trilogy. Group of soldiers are sent down to battle said squad another team is sent to meet up with the team and to track down the ex wife of one of the soldiers...why she is not just his wife, who knows as this part of the plot really goes no where. Still we get an interesting boat ride some nice jungle scenery and a lot of blood. This fact, however, does not save the film from being way to jerky in its presentation and really dull seeming at times. I don't know maybe it was the cgi blood, and smoke and whatever they have to make cgi now even though old effects look better and don't cost that much more. I mean cheap Italian zombie movies could do a bullet hole without cgi why can't we now?
This movie is 20 years too late
yeodawg6 June 2011
Back in 1983 before the Lethal Weapons and Die Hard that rogue cop action adventure was the bell of the straight to video market. Back before our TV was filled with modern soldiers and civilian contractors running around with the latest hi-speed hi-tech gear you could get away with a movie like this. First off using CGI gunshots sticks out like a turd in a punch bowl, you might as well have the actors shout pew-pew. So the movie opens up with Kevin Grevioux (the big black were-wolf from Underworld) and Casper Van Dien of Starship troopers slumming around in Tiger stripe camouflage and platoon era military Alice gear (not assault vests). Not in under armor t-shirts and 5.11 tactical gear. Vampires attack them and apparently even though they're in the jungle this high-speed military unit know-one brought a machete. Like said I couldn't finish the film because of the bad special effects. However remember last time the two stars were dealing with UV-ray bullets, and sci-fi laser assault bugs. Do not watch.
Occasional good qualities amidst a sea of purposeful schlock
I_Ailurophile22 September 2023
It would be easy to list those ways in which we are warned, well before watching, that this is surely going to be a lackluster mess. It would be easy because there are a great many of them. Instead of focusing on that, let's just cut to the chase, and talk about things like the glaring CGI of muzzle flashes from the soldiers' firearms, or the script that quickly comes off as dubious, halfhearted, and no more than perfunctory. There's Kevin VanHook's middling direction, and action sequences that are, shall we say, variable in their strength (though some aren't half bad!). There are some recognizable names and faces appearing in this TV movie, but neither they nor any others on hand are specifically being required to act - though at least they're having a good time? Ludek Drizhal's music is the most purposefully bland pablum I've heard in a film in quite a while, and that some cues play to the light humor that's peppered throughout is A Choice. Practical effects and special makeup look great; on a reported total production budget of $2 million, the same won't necessarily be said of instances of digital effects. But we knew all this before we ever pressed play on 'Slayer,' so if we don't like the viewing experience, we have no one but ourselves to blame.
Dialogue is generally painfully blunt and exact, and often simply bad; with exceptions in both directions, the scene writing is mostly only rudimentarily serviceable. We do at least have a complete, cohesive story on our hands; how compelling it is constitutes another matter. In fairness, there are actually some genuinely good ideas scattered around; then again, some ideas are not so great. But hey, it's not like anyone involved had any illusions about what they were making - schlock this mediocre doesn't happen by accident. That does beg the question of who might actually enjoy this, what merit this held in the eyes of those who participated, and how the Sci Fi Channel could have ever seen fit to greenlight it in the first place. It's not significantly fun or thrilling; what gap could a consciously low-grade production possibly fill? I don't have the answers to these questions. I just know that the picture offers little more than the most baseline level of diversion that any conglomeration of light and sound does. VanHook and his cast and crew succeeded in making an almost perfectly tiresome, dull, unexciting feature. But to what end? If someone does manage to extract meaningful entertainment here then I'm glad for them; I just don't know how they do it. Watch 'Slayer' if you want, but I just can't offer a major reason why you should.
Dialogue is generally painfully blunt and exact, and often simply bad; with exceptions in both directions, the scene writing is mostly only rudimentarily serviceable. We do at least have a complete, cohesive story on our hands; how compelling it is constitutes another matter. In fairness, there are actually some genuinely good ideas scattered around; then again, some ideas are not so great. But hey, it's not like anyone involved had any illusions about what they were making - schlock this mediocre doesn't happen by accident. That does beg the question of who might actually enjoy this, what merit this held in the eyes of those who participated, and how the Sci Fi Channel could have ever seen fit to greenlight it in the first place. It's not significantly fun or thrilling; what gap could a consciously low-grade production possibly fill? I don't have the answers to these questions. I just know that the picture offers little more than the most baseline level of diversion that any conglomeration of light and sound does. VanHook and his cast and crew succeeded in making an almost perfectly tiresome, dull, unexciting feature. But to what end? If someone does manage to extract meaningful entertainment here then I'm glad for them; I just don't know how they do it. Watch 'Slayer' if you want, but I just can't offer a major reason why you should.
Surprisingly good
pbeery9 July 2006
There's a limit to what you expect from a Sci-Fi channel film given the budgets they have to work with. That said, this film kept me happily entertained from start to finish. The casting for the most part was excellent as was the locales where this was shot. Kevin Grevioux (Grieves) deserves special mention for an outstanding performance. His low pitched voice, size, and natural acting ability were well suited to this role. Ditto for Joyce Giraud (Estrella) although she had a much smaller / limiting part. Look, it's a vampire film. You've got to suspend your sense of disbelief a bit even to want to watch the thing. Once you've done that however, this film rocks!
Silly Dialog, But Still Lively, And Fun Overall
danthewrestlingmanorigin22 November 2006
Kevin Van Hook has been pretty busy lately, with several titles released this year. Generally although he has yet to direct a great film, at the very least his films have had interesting casts', and solid effects work. Slayer has a lot of silly macho military type dialog, and humor that drew some groans from me, but overall I enjoyed it. The action was well choreographed, the characters' likable and easy to root for, and it had some bloody scenes, even though it was more of an action film. If your looking for something more serious, don't look here, everything has a kind of kiddie comic book style feel, is never actually scary, and if it weren't for a few bloody bits, this could really be a pg-13 movie. All in all the cast seemed to be having fun making Slayer, and the action never let up. If your a Lynda Carter fan, you'll get a nice feeling of nostalgia watching this clever new spin on Vampire lore.
Not that bad. Interesting spin on Vampire lore.
darkalo8424 January 2022
An interesting outing in the genre but for me Slayer felt a bit too long. If the movie lasted just one hour, the whole thing would have come out as a more satisfactory viewing experience in my opinion. The plot plods along in order to take the film to the required standard running time of 85-90 min. I understand this, but I had to fast forward some scenes in the end just to be able to finish the film in one sitting.
Ever since Starship Troopers was released I have been rather partial to Casper Van Dien. Here he is kind of 'reprising' his role of captain Johnny Rico but in the jungle and with vampires. Nice.
The fight scenes are ok. Vampires get to kill enough soldiers and everything looks decently enough choreographed. I guess the vampires could have fared better with some weapons but... The spin on the origin and motivations of these vampires are a nice addition to the plot and Danny Trejo, Ray Park (Star Wars' Darth Maul) and Lynda Carter (Wonder Woman in the original TV series) are great additions in supporting roles. If only Trejo would have been given more screen time and a greater role in the story.
By the way, if you ever buy the dvd just go quickly for the 'Play' icon. The dvd main menu sequences might give you away some major plot points!!
Ever since Starship Troopers was released I have been rather partial to Casper Van Dien. Here he is kind of 'reprising' his role of captain Johnny Rico but in the jungle and with vampires. Nice.
The fight scenes are ok. Vampires get to kill enough soldiers and everything looks decently enough choreographed. I guess the vampires could have fared better with some weapons but... The spin on the origin and motivations of these vampires are a nice addition to the plot and Danny Trejo, Ray Park (Star Wars' Darth Maul) and Lynda Carter (Wonder Woman in the original TV series) are great additions in supporting roles. If only Trejo would have been given more screen time and a greater role in the story.
By the way, if you ever buy the dvd just go quickly for the 'Play' icon. The dvd main menu sequences might give you away some major plot points!!
Not bad sci-fi originals! Not bad!
jenkins-stewart18 December 2007
Warning: Spoilers
Slayer is a Science Fiction Original movie. You will recognize various actors from other, more expensive films, but the fact remains. However, it is not a bad T.V. movie
there are much worse out there. In fact, Slayer is actually much better than most "A" list vampire movies
notably Underworld, Underworld 2, Dracula 2000, Blade 3 to name a few. The reasons for this are simple
solid production yields better film-making.
Slayer uses sets that appear real: jungles appear to be jungles, caves appear to be caves you are never transported away instead to the magical realm of "studio lot 57 smothered in cgi" as would be in "A" list film these days. Also, Slayer's actors do their own stunts, and you can actually enjoy the stunts as they are performed because they are not 1. filmed over in cgi or 2. cut up into a million tiny cuts that the obfuscate the actual action. Standards being what they are, these facts will probably count to the movie's discredit but that would be a sad and foolish thing.
Trite, cliché, and tired the story is nevertheless coherent, and well structured. The formula of "guy rescues ex wife with the help of plucky sidekick in order to defeat the evil villain who has corrupted his best friend" is something we've all seen before but here there's less of an effort done to package the formula in complete seriousness than is invested in simply executing it well. It is enough that actors deliver their lines and appear to enjoy being part of the cast there's an energy that comes from such performances, "pride," if you will. I would rather watch a thousand such camp performances than say, Edward Norton in the remake of The Italian Job, whose passive-aggressive role as villain is only as apt as it reflects his disrespect for the studio and his coworkers. Given that the dialogue in this film does however border on complete stupidity throughout.
Don't expect anything particular remarkable out of this film. The cgi that is used is VERY dated, the camera-work, while sharp, is noticeably perfunctory, the story is predictable, the gore-effects are see-through but you know what? Who cares! This film at least, is honest about itself. Most "A" films are this stupid, but there's no love involved in the making, just cold, computed box office estimates and rehashes. The result is crap like Underworld, and Underworld 2, completely "square" films with edges so hard you could cut your teeth on them. Slayer is a good old fashioned, well rounded, action-adventure-horror movie that's a little short on the brains (though it has its moments, including one ode to Apocalypse Now) but big on heart. It is not a creatively bankrupt marketing venture smeared in cgi honey and shoveled down the throats of teenage America if you're looking for that, go far far away from this one! ((Slayer is a standard action/adventure/horror TV movie. 50% completion plus 20% for above average execution. Not the finest amateur work out there, but better than most including many (if not all) of the "A" list vampire films of the past few years. 70%))
Slayer uses sets that appear real: jungles appear to be jungles, caves appear to be caves you are never transported away instead to the magical realm of "studio lot 57 smothered in cgi" as would be in "A" list film these days. Also, Slayer's actors do their own stunts, and you can actually enjoy the stunts as they are performed because they are not 1. filmed over in cgi or 2. cut up into a million tiny cuts that the obfuscate the actual action. Standards being what they are, these facts will probably count to the movie's discredit but that would be a sad and foolish thing.
Trite, cliché, and tired the story is nevertheless coherent, and well structured. The formula of "guy rescues ex wife with the help of plucky sidekick in order to defeat the evil villain who has corrupted his best friend" is something we've all seen before but here there's less of an effort done to package the formula in complete seriousness than is invested in simply executing it well. It is enough that actors deliver their lines and appear to enjoy being part of the cast there's an energy that comes from such performances, "pride," if you will. I would rather watch a thousand such camp performances than say, Edward Norton in the remake of The Italian Job, whose passive-aggressive role as villain is only as apt as it reflects his disrespect for the studio and his coworkers. Given that the dialogue in this film does however border on complete stupidity throughout.
Don't expect anything particular remarkable out of this film. The cgi that is used is VERY dated, the camera-work, while sharp, is noticeably perfunctory, the story is predictable, the gore-effects are see-through but you know what? Who cares! This film at least, is honest about itself. Most "A" films are this stupid, but there's no love involved in the making, just cold, computed box office estimates and rehashes. The result is crap like Underworld, and Underworld 2, completely "square" films with edges so hard you could cut your teeth on them. Slayer is a good old fashioned, well rounded, action-adventure-horror movie that's a little short on the brains (though it has its moments, including one ode to Apocalypse Now) but big on heart. It is not a creatively bankrupt marketing venture smeared in cgi honey and shoveled down the throats of teenage America if you're looking for that, go far far away from this one! ((Slayer is a standard action/adventure/horror TV movie. 50% completion plus 20% for above average execution. Not the finest amateur work out there, but better than most including many (if not all) of the "A" list vampire films of the past few years. 70%))
"Lots of blood"... You mean water with red dye?
mtaeger5 September 2022
This movie is a complete mess. Beginning to end there are little or no breaks in the "action". But if CVD is in it it has to be watchable.... Nope. They skimped on everything and I know where the entire budget went for the movie, the final villain costume. Which admittedly for the budget this film likely had was "sort of" impressive. The vampires in this movie aren't vampires so much as blood sucking monsters. They follow no conventional lore of what a vampire is. Aside from drinking blood. The worst part of the movie is the fact that there are no breaks to tell a real story. In reality it's much like most cheap martial arts movies. Fighting and bloodshed tell the story or pad the runtime. Makeup is horrible for the run of the mill vampires. Most of the vamps wear masks or other face coverings. Most likely to hide the fact they use the same stunt actors over and over again. It's boring and a hard pass as far as me recommending it for someone to watch.
"Why don't I just cut your head off so we can all go home." Another crap made-for-TV turkey.
poolandrews3 November 2007
Warning: Spoilers
Slayer starts in the South American rain forest where Captain Hawk (Casper Van Dien) & his men are attacked by a bunch of Vampires, they barely manage to escape with their lives. Jump forward six months later & Hawk is called to see Colonel Weaver (Lynda Carter) who informs him there has been other reported sightings of Vampires & that his ex-wife & her Goddaughter Dr. Laurie Williams (Jennifer O'Dell) has gone out there on an expedition to study beetles, worried she ask's Hawk to take a squad of soldiers back to South America & officially provide back up to Captain Grieves (Kevin Grevioux) & his men while at the same time unofficially look for Laurie & not get killed by the Vampires who have decided to venture out of the caves & into the civilised World...
Edited, written & directed by Kevin VanHook this is yet another poorly made Sci-Fi Channel original which just isn't very good in any respect. The humourless script has nothing going for it as far as I could see, it's one of those modern Vampire films which decides to pick & choose the 'traditional' Vampire film lore rules it wants to use like these Vampires can be killed with stakes through the heart & have fangs but at the same time can freely walk around in sunlight & they don't sleep in coffins. The film moves along at a reasonable pace but it's all very dull, bland & lifeless. The story is poor & just rather stupid, the character's are terrible, the dialogue is forgettable & there's very little here to recommend. Slayer also tries to have some sort of ecological message as the head Vampire claims they are only starting to kill human beings because of their systematic destruction of the rain forest where they have lived in secret for centuries, unfortunately there's no conviction there & is more like a throwaway line to fill the time than a serious statement. There isn't enough exploitation content & is a rather unsatisfying way to spend 90 minutes of your time. The makers don't even do anything with the jungle setting, hell I didn't expect Predator (1987) but I hoped for a bit more than this.
Director VanHook has made several horror films all of which I have seen have been equally poor, I'm sorry but he does nothing here & turns in a throughly forgettable looking & feeling film. There's no atmosphere or tension & as for genuine scares forget about it. The gore is restrained, there are some bitten necks & a bit of spraying blood but it's nothing we haven't seen before or has much impact. There's also a huge Vampire monster creature at the end but it doesn't look that impressive & it gets itself killed far too easily.
With a supposed budget of about $2,000,000 this actually had a decent sized amount of money spent on it but it's still a rubbish film, it's reasonably well made but nothing special or memorable. The acting sucks, I'm sorry but that's the way I saw it.
Slayer is yet another poor, stupid & boring made-for-TV Sci-Fi Channel rubbish that I simply can't recommend. Not to be confused with the rather fine one time British 'Video Nasty' gore film The Slayer (1982) which is 100 times better than this so track that down & watch that instead.
Edited, written & directed by Kevin VanHook this is yet another poorly made Sci-Fi Channel original which just isn't very good in any respect. The humourless script has nothing going for it as far as I could see, it's one of those modern Vampire films which decides to pick & choose the 'traditional' Vampire film lore rules it wants to use like these Vampires can be killed with stakes through the heart & have fangs but at the same time can freely walk around in sunlight & they don't sleep in coffins. The film moves along at a reasonable pace but it's all very dull, bland & lifeless. The story is poor & just rather stupid, the character's are terrible, the dialogue is forgettable & there's very little here to recommend. Slayer also tries to have some sort of ecological message as the head Vampire claims they are only starting to kill human beings because of their systematic destruction of the rain forest where they have lived in secret for centuries, unfortunately there's no conviction there & is more like a throwaway line to fill the time than a serious statement. There isn't enough exploitation content & is a rather unsatisfying way to spend 90 minutes of your time. The makers don't even do anything with the jungle setting, hell I didn't expect Predator (1987) but I hoped for a bit more than this.
Director VanHook has made several horror films all of which I have seen have been equally poor, I'm sorry but he does nothing here & turns in a throughly forgettable looking & feeling film. There's no atmosphere or tension & as for genuine scares forget about it. The gore is restrained, there are some bitten necks & a bit of spraying blood but it's nothing we haven't seen before or has much impact. There's also a huge Vampire monster creature at the end but it doesn't look that impressive & it gets itself killed far too easily.
With a supposed budget of about $2,000,000 this actually had a decent sized amount of money spent on it but it's still a rubbish film, it's reasonably well made but nothing special or memorable. The acting sucks, I'm sorry but that's the way I saw it.
Slayer is yet another poor, stupid & boring made-for-TV Sci-Fi Channel rubbish that I simply can't recommend. Not to be confused with the rather fine one time British 'Video Nasty' gore film The Slayer (1982) which is 100 times better than this so track that down & watch that instead.
Very good movie
dgreen660418 July 2006
I thought this movie was very good. It was a little gory but what military type movie isn't. There were some really good plot twists in this movie. I like all horror movies and most sci-fi movies. The characters were very believable! I was waiting to see what would happen next. The special effects and costumes were pretty good. There were some humorous parts to the movie and I thought Alexis Cruz, Lynda Carter and the rest of the cast were great! I've seen movies with similar plots and this one ranks up at the top. All in all, I would watch this movie again because of the different plot twists, humor, adventure and storyline.
I've got old lady all over me.
lastliberal27 September 2008
I was searching for the elusive video nastie "The Slayer," when I came across this.
You have to suspend you knowledge of vampires, because these act more like zombies, except they just bite like vampires, but they are out during the day. Confused? Well, let that go and enjoy the fun.
Don't look for great dialog - they're soldiers and dialog is that of a typical war movie. Funny dialog it has, especially from Jennifer O'Dell. Lots of fighting and killing and blood - and a great monster!
There are some interesting things in this movie. Wooden stakes instead of bayonets on the rifles, decapitations, a really hot vampire (Joyce Giraud - Miss Puerto Rico Universe 1998), Lynda Carter ("Wonder Woman") as a Colonel, Danny Trejo (Halloween, Planet terror, The Devil's Rejects), Tony Plana ("Ugly Betty")
And, of course, the whole problem came about because of corporate greed. The destruction of the rain forest disturbed their habit. Isn't capitalism great? Great scenery in Puerto Rico.
You have to suspend you knowledge of vampires, because these act more like zombies, except they just bite like vampires, but they are out during the day. Confused? Well, let that go and enjoy the fun.
Don't look for great dialog - they're soldiers and dialog is that of a typical war movie. Funny dialog it has, especially from Jennifer O'Dell. Lots of fighting and killing and blood - and a great monster!
There are some interesting things in this movie. Wooden stakes instead of bayonets on the rifles, decapitations, a really hot vampire (Joyce Giraud - Miss Puerto Rico Universe 1998), Lynda Carter ("Wonder Woman") as a Colonel, Danny Trejo (Halloween, Planet terror, The Devil's Rejects), Tony Plana ("Ugly Betty")
And, of course, the whole problem came about because of corporate greed. The destruction of the rain forest disturbed their habit. Isn't capitalism great? Great scenery in Puerto Rico.
Casper Van Dien is my boy
clownbaby200018 July 2006
Great Movie, but only because Casper Van Dien is in it. I am a huge fan of sci-fi "orginal pictures", and this movie doesn't disappoint. Slayer might not quite measure up to Raptor Island, (another sci-fi original), but it is pretty close. The other characters in the movie are fairly boring, but luckily Casper is in almost every scene. The ending is thrilling, and also a laugh riot at the same time. Something rarely achieved in movies in this day and age. Slayer accomplishes all the qualities one would hope for in a sci-fi movie, a great/believable plot, and Casper Van Dien. I heard a rumor that he could be returning to Starship Troopers 3 (if it is ever made), I am keeping my fingers crossed.
A great flick for any sci-fi/Casper Van Dien fan!!
A great flick for any sci-fi/Casper Van Dien fan!!
OK but could have been better
Starbuck19997 May 2009
Warning: Spoilers
This has a good story and OK acting. but two things that pist me off was rain forest crap. but I got past that. when ray park played two brothers I'm waiting for one to get killed and the other go psycho and be cool. but instead one brother gets killed near the end and the other brother gets shot in the heart with a wooden steak in a few seconds. thats why this is not a movie I would watch over and over again. good story good actors and pretty crappy effects but not the worst I've seen. so I would tell anyone to watch it who likes caper van dein but if your a ray park fan like me you'll be mad. so hope you enjoy the film again this is not the best vampire film i've seen and it could have been really cool but its OK.
A really fun horror/action hybrid romp
Woodyanders11 December 2007
Warning: Spoilers
An elite commando squad led by the rugged Hawk (an engaging performance by Casper Van Dien) and his equally tough longtime buddy Grieves (the hulking, deep-voiced Kevin Grevioux, who's excellent) run afoul of lethal and powerful vampires in a South American rain forest. Grieves gets turned into a vampire and becomes the leader of a savage roving herd. Moreover, Hawk has to rescue his spunky scientist ex-wife Dr. Laurie Williams (winningly played by luscious blonde looker Jennifer O'Dell) from the bloodsuckers' evil clutches. Writer/director Kevin VanHook concocts a fresh, lively and inspired horror/action genre hybrid that delivers likable characters, a handy helping of graphic gore, a constant snappy pace, and plentiful rousing and well-staged action scenes. In addition, VanHook puts a novel spin on standard vampire lore: these vampires are extremely smart, hunt in packs, and can walk around in broad daylight. Van Dien and Grevioux are fine in the leads; they receive able support from Tony Plana as amiable local innkeeper Javier, Ray Park as a pair of vicious martial arts acrobatic twins, Joyce Giraud as fierce, yet sexy vampire vixen Estrella, Lynda Carter as the hard-nosed Colonel Jessica Weaver, and Danny Trejo as jolly, wily fisherman Montegna. Matt Steinauer's slick cinematography and Ludek Drizhal's stirring score are both up to speed. Spirited and exciting, this nifty little feature makes for hugely enjoyable viewing.
A flawed but decent film
TheLittleSongbird30 August 2012
For a Sci-Fi Original, Slayer is not too bad. In fact, it is decent. Of course it is flawed, the dialogue is very silly and trite, the story has moments where it is very predictable, the gore is too restrained and almost see-through and the special effects are rather crude and would look more at home in a movie from 30-50 years ago. However, the scenery does have atmosphere and the camera work is sharp and efficient rather than choppy and perfunctory. Despite the fact that it is predictable, the film does not make the mistake of other Sci-Fi originals of being dull, and there is some suspense and tension as well as some fun. The characters are more credible than the stereotypical cardboard cut-outs, they aren't the most likable characters but I have seen far more annoying ones. The acting is better than ever, even from Casper van Dien. Overall, flawed but for a Sci-Fi original it is a decent one. 6/10 Bethany Cox
An enjoyable if rather unconventional vampire film
kannibalcorpsegrinder3 October 2021
Arriving back from the Amazon, a team of soldiers is told to go back after strange rumors come out of the jungle, and as the war gets more personal and deadly they realize they're up against vampires that can walk in daylight and launch a full-scale invasion to extinguish the race from the countryside.
This here doesn't have a whole lot wrong and isn't that bad. One of the best features is that this one really has plenty of nice action scenes with just about no downtime in between them. This starts off with a great ambush amidst scores of ruins as the team is ambushed by the creatures and forced to defend themselves with the unconventional daylight action and martial arts battles make for a fun time. After this strong opening, it never lets up from there focusing on the brief ambushes with the vampires jumping out to grab someone turning into a huge firefight or a slaughter ripping their victim to pieces. With the secondary storyline involving the team searching for his ex-wife containing plenty of action this really makes the film go over smoothly, as the only times not doing battle are actually important as to what's going on and still manages to entertain. This one also has a lot to like with the gore in the film, which is also really nice. This one really knocks off a huge amount of humans and vampires once it lets the bodies drop, as there's a huge body count between both sides. Several vampires are staked bloodily in the chest, even more are impaled in the chest with spears, there's a really savage decapitation, plenty of bodies ripped in half, including one of the most brutal waist-tears ever which spills large amounts of blood, and several get shot up with bullets. Most of the human victims are relegated to being bitten in the throat. This is made up for by having three separate military squads getting attacked which is quite nice to see. The last positive to be had here is that this one has several really smart reasons for the differences in vampiric behavior, which has plenty to like with the story being told. The idea of the vampires coming out of the rainforest echoing hints of Incan and Aztec mythology is rather nice, setting up the idea of them being far more present and prominent in the area than expected. As well, it goes forward with the second team searching for the first one who is vampirized and leading the other creatures in their war against the locals that sets up a rather enjoyable finale that pits the two sides together against each other conveniently. As well as the joking banter that is at times pretty funny, all of these here makes the film seem really better than it should be. This one wasn't bad but did have a few problems with it. The main issue is that the film does decide to drop many of the most traditional and basic vampire rules. Even though this one does the smart thing and explains why the changes made which make sense, the fact is, hardcore fans will be outraged that they're made at all. The more liberal ones will accept the changes, but again the other fans will have problems. Another flaw is that there's nothing really frightening about the vampires as the only difference is that there are incredibly fake fang dentures that are quite bad. The fact that there's hardly any variety in the kills could be a source of discomfort, as there isn't a whole lot of differences in them. These, though, are all that stop the film.
Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, Brief Nudity and a mild sex scene.
This here doesn't have a whole lot wrong and isn't that bad. One of the best features is that this one really has plenty of nice action scenes with just about no downtime in between them. This starts off with a great ambush amidst scores of ruins as the team is ambushed by the creatures and forced to defend themselves with the unconventional daylight action and martial arts battles make for a fun time. After this strong opening, it never lets up from there focusing on the brief ambushes with the vampires jumping out to grab someone turning into a huge firefight or a slaughter ripping their victim to pieces. With the secondary storyline involving the team searching for his ex-wife containing plenty of action this really makes the film go over smoothly, as the only times not doing battle are actually important as to what's going on and still manages to entertain. This one also has a lot to like with the gore in the film, which is also really nice. This one really knocks off a huge amount of humans and vampires once it lets the bodies drop, as there's a huge body count between both sides. Several vampires are staked bloodily in the chest, even more are impaled in the chest with spears, there's a really savage decapitation, plenty of bodies ripped in half, including one of the most brutal waist-tears ever which spills large amounts of blood, and several get shot up with bullets. Most of the human victims are relegated to being bitten in the throat. This is made up for by having three separate military squads getting attacked which is quite nice to see. The last positive to be had here is that this one has several really smart reasons for the differences in vampiric behavior, which has plenty to like with the story being told. The idea of the vampires coming out of the rainforest echoing hints of Incan and Aztec mythology is rather nice, setting up the idea of them being far more present and prominent in the area than expected. As well, it goes forward with the second team searching for the first one who is vampirized and leading the other creatures in their war against the locals that sets up a rather enjoyable finale that pits the two sides together against each other conveniently. As well as the joking banter that is at times pretty funny, all of these here makes the film seem really better than it should be. This one wasn't bad but did have a few problems with it. The main issue is that the film does decide to drop many of the most traditional and basic vampire rules. Even though this one does the smart thing and explains why the changes made which make sense, the fact is, hardcore fans will be outraged that they're made at all. The more liberal ones will accept the changes, but again the other fans will have problems. Another flaw is that there's nothing really frightening about the vampires as the only difference is that there are incredibly fake fang dentures that are quite bad. The fact that there's hardly any variety in the kills could be a source of discomfort, as there isn't a whole lot of differences in them. These, though, are all that stop the film.
Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language, Brief Nudity and a mild sex scene.
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