"The Pool" is a really top-notch slasher without that many flaws.
**SPOILERS**
Getting off of school, students Sarah, (Kristen Miller) Carmen, (Elena Uhlig) Greg, (Thorsten Grasshoff) Frank, (John Hopkins) Kim, (Isla Fischer) Mike, (James McAvoy) and Mel, (Cordelia Bugeja) decide to throw a party to celebrate the end of exams. Arriving at the secret location with Martin, (Jason Liggett) and Diego, (Maximilian Grill) at what appears to be a huge mansion, they proceed to party and have a general good time and rekindle old romances. After finding several of them dead, they soon realize that a psychotic killer is among them and is one of them. Desperate to get out, they soon start to find more ways of trying to get out only to have the killer shut them off before they can escape. With their numbers dwindling and no one to trust, the remaining members of the group make one last grasp to escape.
The Good News: This is one of the better slashers around. The fact this one manages to keep it entertaining while still being incredibly cliché. This one here puts together practically a repeat of just about every cliché and plot-theme possible, yet they're not a detriment to this one. The way it manages to keep the entertainment factor going. The fact that it also manages to include a lot of the traditional motives in here is quite nice. This one works the stalking scenes in some of the best scenes in the genre. The opening sequence with the shadowy house during the raging thunderstorm produces some chilling moments, especially before the killer actually arrives, which is a new thing on it's own, and once it gets to the pool house itself, there's just non-stop classic stalking scenes. From the first pool attack to the bathroom stalls and the big one through the restaurant, these chases only get better as it goes on. Even the biggest moments in the air-duct scene, which is one of the best in the film, contains a lot of the greatest tricks to get the suspense going. There's plenty of sudden machete stabs through the metal sheeting, a lot of silence to prepare for the next assault, and some of the best desperation moments in the style. They're suspenseful, inventive and quite creepy, all of which are necessary for good slashers. Another factor to good slashers is a great series of kills, which this one has in spades. There's a large amount of stabbing in the stomach, a slash across the chest, a leg cut off above the knee, a slit throat, stabbing over the neck and chest with a busted beer bottle and being set on fire, to name just a few. However, none of these are even come close to it's one simply incredible kill that has to rank as one of the single best kills no matter what the genre, and is the single best reason to see this film. There's no way to ruin this one, other than it involves a water slide, a machete and an open end into the pool. It's easy to figure out, but it's still a simply awesome moment that is just pure fun and quite exhilarating. The fast, near-perfect pace here is another great factor, as this one keeps moving forward onto something else before it can get bogged down in pointless subplots, which is a great plus as it stays lean and without distractions. The location at the pool, which is house itself, is one of the single best locations ever, with it's dark and twisting hallways, luminous view from the reflecting water and tons of places within to lay traps or hide. The final confrontation as well is quite exhilarating, with it's action-packed setting, fighting and different methods of attack that preface a ton of battling. It ends the movie on the perfect high. These elements all make it incredibly fun and watchable.
The Bad News: There isn't a whole lot of flaws in this one. The film's biggest flaw is that there's simply not a lot of variety in the kills. Practically every single one, minus a few, is a variation with a machete, and there's no real creative modes used. There's some nice set-ups, but while others have become known for their creativity in regards to kills, this one's sameness is something that hinders it. The only other flaw is that there's way too many survivors for this kind of film. This one's nearly a dozen survivors are quite surprising, and this can lead away from the body count. These, though, are the only things wrong with this one.
The Final Verdict: While not a completely great film, as a slasher this one is a lot of fun. Highly recommended to all slasher fans or those looking for some nonthreatening fun, while the only ones who won't like it at all will be those against the genre as a whole.
Rated R: Graphic Language, Graphic Violence and Brief Nudity
**SPOILERS**
Getting off of school, students Sarah, (Kristen Miller) Carmen, (Elena Uhlig) Greg, (Thorsten Grasshoff) Frank, (John Hopkins) Kim, (Isla Fischer) Mike, (James McAvoy) and Mel, (Cordelia Bugeja) decide to throw a party to celebrate the end of exams. Arriving at the secret location with Martin, (Jason Liggett) and Diego, (Maximilian Grill) at what appears to be a huge mansion, they proceed to party and have a general good time and rekindle old romances. After finding several of them dead, they soon realize that a psychotic killer is among them and is one of them. Desperate to get out, they soon start to find more ways of trying to get out only to have the killer shut them off before they can escape. With their numbers dwindling and no one to trust, the remaining members of the group make one last grasp to escape.
The Good News: This is one of the better slashers around. The fact this one manages to keep it entertaining while still being incredibly cliché. This one here puts together practically a repeat of just about every cliché and plot-theme possible, yet they're not a detriment to this one. The way it manages to keep the entertainment factor going. The fact that it also manages to include a lot of the traditional motives in here is quite nice. This one works the stalking scenes in some of the best scenes in the genre. The opening sequence with the shadowy house during the raging thunderstorm produces some chilling moments, especially before the killer actually arrives, which is a new thing on it's own, and once it gets to the pool house itself, there's just non-stop classic stalking scenes. From the first pool attack to the bathroom stalls and the big one through the restaurant, these chases only get better as it goes on. Even the biggest moments in the air-duct scene, which is one of the best in the film, contains a lot of the greatest tricks to get the suspense going. There's plenty of sudden machete stabs through the metal sheeting, a lot of silence to prepare for the next assault, and some of the best desperation moments in the style. They're suspenseful, inventive and quite creepy, all of which are necessary for good slashers. Another factor to good slashers is a great series of kills, which this one has in spades. There's a large amount of stabbing in the stomach, a slash across the chest, a leg cut off above the knee, a slit throat, stabbing over the neck and chest with a busted beer bottle and being set on fire, to name just a few. However, none of these are even come close to it's one simply incredible kill that has to rank as one of the single best kills no matter what the genre, and is the single best reason to see this film. There's no way to ruin this one, other than it involves a water slide, a machete and an open end into the pool. It's easy to figure out, but it's still a simply awesome moment that is just pure fun and quite exhilarating. The fast, near-perfect pace here is another great factor, as this one keeps moving forward onto something else before it can get bogged down in pointless subplots, which is a great plus as it stays lean and without distractions. The location at the pool, which is house itself, is one of the single best locations ever, with it's dark and twisting hallways, luminous view from the reflecting water and tons of places within to lay traps or hide. The final confrontation as well is quite exhilarating, with it's action-packed setting, fighting and different methods of attack that preface a ton of battling. It ends the movie on the perfect high. These elements all make it incredibly fun and watchable.
The Bad News: There isn't a whole lot of flaws in this one. The film's biggest flaw is that there's simply not a lot of variety in the kills. Practically every single one, minus a few, is a variation with a machete, and there's no real creative modes used. There's some nice set-ups, but while others have become known for their creativity in regards to kills, this one's sameness is something that hinders it. The only other flaw is that there's way too many survivors for this kind of film. This one's nearly a dozen survivors are quite surprising, and this can lead away from the body count. These, though, are the only things wrong with this one.
The Final Verdict: While not a completely great film, as a slasher this one is a lot of fun. Highly recommended to all slasher fans or those looking for some nonthreatening fun, while the only ones who won't like it at all will be those against the genre as a whole.
Rated R: Graphic Language, Graphic Violence and Brief Nudity