Directed by Bloomquist, from a script he and his brother, Carson, wrote, the feature film is set in 1987 on the last night for boys at Camp Briarbrook. The camp was founded by Gilbert McCalister (William Sadler), who is set to retire, much to the surprise of his daughter Heather (Cara Buono). His two teenage sons (20s?), Peter (Spencer List) and Shawn (Tyler Elliot Burke), also help out at camp. After the bus takes away the last of the campers, Peter gathers the other counselors, including Lauren, Dylan (Adam Weppler), Ashley, and Ben (Dan Leahy), for a farewell toast.
A mysterious figure terrorizes a camp full of teens in She Came From the Woods, a supernatural horror from director Erik Bloomquist, who also co-wrote the screenplay with her brother, Carson Bloomquist. Creepy, suspenseful, and suitably gory, it's a return to the summer camp slasher genre.
Director: Erik Bloomquist
Writers: Erik Bloomquist, Carson Bloomquist
Stars: Cara Buono, Clare Foley, Spencer List
Set in 1987, the film takes place on the last night of summer vacation at Camp Briarbrook, led by the kindly Gilbert McAlister (William Sadler), his adult daughter Heather (Cara Buono), and their two teenage sons, the irresponsible Peter and sensible Shawn (Tyler Elliot Burke).
When Peter persuades the other teen volunteers to perform a ghost-story ritual (a ridiculously simple one: prick his finger and yell "Agatha!"), he unwittingly unleashes the vengeful figure of nurse Agatha Good (Madeleine Dauer), A former assassin colleague of Gilbert's. As Agatha's body count continues to rise, the McAlisters and the teens must figure out how to defeat the supernatural threat before they all die.
The Bloomquists' obvious affection for the summer camp slasher is immediately apparent, thanks to solid production design work, a distinct set of familiar characters (the practical good girl, the bully, the shit-out, etc.), and a cleverly chosen needle drop. or two, including an early outing for Kim Wilde's Kids in America. Likewise, the plot feels refreshingly original for the genre—it even has significant franchise potential—complete with a catchy, Candyman-style word repetition ritual.
As for Agatha herself, the idea is for her to manifest more fully with each death, so it takes a while before we get a proper look at her and the end result doesn't disappoint. This also allows for a variety of grisly deaths: the first is essentially a flurry of powerful emotions (with an unhealthy dose of toxic male entitlement), while a later scene involves Agatha effectively possessing all the younger children in the camp. and turning them into killer little monsters.
As the above suggests, there's plenty of jet-black humor in the mix and Bloomquist maintains a tight grip on tone throughout. Admittedly, her She Came From the Woods is a little rough around the edges in places, but both the scares and emotional moments land as intended.
The performances are solid across the board and the characters have enough depth that you really care if they make it or not. The exception is Adam Weppler, who goes a bit too far as Dylan's bully, like he ended up at 11 while everyone else is at 6. That said, he does have some pretty splendid horror movie timing, which makes up for his overkill in other places.
The standout, though, is the ever-reliable William Sadler, who gives the film some serious horror gravitas while effortlessly nailing his emotional exposition.
In short, She Came From the Woods is an engaging summer horror camp that offers plenty of shocks and scares and should please fans of the subgenre. There's also more than enough talent behind the camera to make the next Bloomquist movie a highly anticipated project.
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