Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Sharni Vinson | ... | Erin | |
Nicholas Tucci | ... | Felix | |
Wendy Glenn | ... | Zee | |
AJ Bowen | ... | Crispian | |
Joe Swanberg | ... | Drake | |
Margaret Laney | ... | Kelly (as Sarah Myers) | |
Amy Seimetz | ... | Aimee | |
Ti West | ... | Tariq | |
Rob Moran | ... | Paul | |
Barbara Crampton | ... | Aubrey | |
L.C. Holt | ... | Lamb Mask | |
Simon Barrett | ... | Tiger Mask | |
Lane Hughes | ... | Fox Mask | |
Larry Fessenden | ... | Erik Harson | |
Kate Lyn Sheil | ... | Talia |
A family reunion turns into a full-on massacre when a gang of masked killers invade a sprawling country mansion on a ruthless mission of murder. Paul (Rob Moran) and Aubrey Davison (Barbara Crampton) are about to celebrate their wedding anniversary, and they've invited their grown-up children out to the country to share in the revelry. The first to arrive are Crispian (A.J. Bowen) and his new girlfriend Erin (Sharni Vinson). It isn't long before the rest of the family has filed in as well, and the party gets under way. Later, at the dinner table, old sibling rivalries begin to resurface and parental preferences quickly become apparent. Just as tensions begin to flare up, however, a crossbow arrow blasts through the glass window and panic sets in. The family is under attack. But who are the savage invaders donning eerie farm-animal masks, and what is their motive behind slaughtering everyone in the house? No one is safe as the blood starts to flow, but Erin is determined to see the ...
It's a family reunion for the Davison family. The father was in the marketing department for a huge defense contractor, and he's loaded. Erin (Sharni Vinson) is one of the son's new girlfriend. A gang of masked killers descend on the family, but Erin has a few surprises waiting for them.
It takes a lot of time to get the movie going. Aside from the perfunctory killings, the first 25 minutes is dedicated to bringing a whole lot of these characters on screen a few at a time. I'm not particularly interested in any of them. And I couldn't really tell who's who in this family. When they finally get together at the diner table, I feel that's the real start of the movie. We finally get a nice feel of who some of these people are. Their interactions revealed more to me at the diner table than the previous 25 minutes. Then the action starts.
The action is all crossbows, knives, and axes. It's a little weird. While I understand the reason, I think a more prominent explanation is needed. Then the movie gives us a twist. It's a very good twist. It could have been much better with a better intro to lay down the bread crumbs. Once again, the weak intro fails the movie.
As for the actors, I found most of them to be overacting at first. It's not unusual in a horror movie. A lot of yelling and screaming can hide a lot of sins. It didn't help that so many of the characters seem to be doing stupid things. Sharni Vinson is a good solid lead. She looks like a weak girlie girl but is also believable as a bad ass. Nicholas Tucci plays a pretty good weasel. Overall, the acting is pretty good for a low budget horror.