Are You Ready for the Harvest?
MGM releases DARK HARVEST to VOD Friday October 13th, 2023. The Halloween set horror film premiered One Night Only at Alamo Drafthouse Theaters on October 11th. The epic trailer offers a glimpse into horrifying Halloween legend, Sawtooth Jack. Rated R for “Strong horror violence and gore, language throughout and brief drug use."
SYNOPSIS: In a cursed town, the annual harvest becomes a brutal battle for survival. On Halloween 1963, Sawtooth Jack, a terrifying legend, rises from the cornfields, threatening the town’s children. Groups of boys unite to defeat the murderous scarecrow before midnight. Richie, a rebellious outcast, joins the run, motivated by his brother’s previous victory. As the hunt progresses, Richie makes a shocking discovery and faces a pivotal choice to break the relentless cycle.
From Hard Candy, 30 Days of Night, and “Hannibal” director David Slade and starring Casey Likes, E’myri Crutchfield, Dustin Ceithamer, Elizabeth Reaser with Jeremy Davies. Based on the novel by Norman Partridge. Screenplay by Michael Gilio.
The book the film is based on, "is set during Halloween of 1963 in a small Midwestern town where teenage boys eagerly square off with the butcher knife wielding October Boy, aka Ol’ Hacksaw Face aka Sawtooth Jack.”
Trailer:Sawtooth Jack Rises movie clip:
It Must Die So We Can Live movie clip:
Explained in English (Spoilers):
Recap, Ending Explained (Spoilers):
Stills:
Reviews:
"For better and worse, Dark Harvest plays like a classic Halloween legend in movie form. Like its source material, Slade and Gilio don’t handhold beyond the basic rules of the annual hunt. Its narrative reveals won’t surprise anyone, and its stock characters ensure the events are mostly forgettable. But it’s proficiently crafted and does enough right by the gore, Halloween setting, and monster that Dark Harvest makes for a serviceable watch this spooky season. It may not make for requisite annual viewing, but its fearless commitment to slaughtering teens against a cozy Fall backdrop at least makes for a fun enough watch as you carve up jack-o’-lanterns." ★★½ Bloody-Disgusting.com
“Dark Harvest is ultimately a film of style over substance, but hell, that style sure is grand. I don’t think anyone will be calling this a new Halloween classic, but it’s definitely an experience that can coast on v i b e s, and what great vibes they are. I didn’t love “Dark Harvest,” but I loved basking in its atmosphere. Happy Halloween.” 6 out of 10 SlashFilm.com
“Not only are the special and practical effects in Dark Harvest very efficient and gorgeous looking. The key character of “Sawtooth Jack” has a brilliant look that I immediately loved. Basically, “Sawtooth Jack” looks like an unmasked Trick ‘r Treat “Sam” as an adult […] I also really loved that Dark Harvest played out in the 1960s.” HeavenOfHorror.com
” …David Slade’s adaptation of the acclaimed horror novel Dark Harvest finally gets a release, and a viewer immediately understands why it sat on the shelf for so long. The monster, a pumpkin-headed scarecrow phantom named Sawtooth Jack, is fun. But everything else about this tale of a small town subjecting its teen boys to an annual ritual of violence is too silly for words – a slasher movie with delusions of Shirley Jackson grandeur.” 4 out of 10, IGN.com
“It’s a mature take on familiar stories about shady communities and those who refuse to be someone else’s sacrifice, woven into the toxic imprisonment of small-town mindsets that refuse to acknowledge progress. Where the film somewhat disappoints is in its recreation of the early-1960s. Dark Harvest feels like a time capsule that cosplays 1963…” PasteMagazine.com
“Beyond the free-flowing blood, there are multiple heads that are split wide open. Indeed, the special-effects, make-up, and VFX teams have a field day in creating effects that are deliriously gory and step far across the line to come up with new ways for bodies to come apart. It’s almost like it’s a zombie movie!” ScreenAnarchy.com
“There are some really cool sequences and a few scares here and there, but since the film leans on the Stephen King side of storytelling, characters take front and center here. Not to mention, there’s more to Sawtooth Jack than might be expected. This diminishes some of the creature’s horror, although, again, like King, this is about the town’s monsters rather than the monster in the town.” 6.5 out of 10, WeLiveEntertainment.com
YouTube Reviews:
Dark Harvest novel cover:
Creepy Duck Design created this fan poster back in Jan 2022 which I think is so much better than the official poster at the top:
More Posters:
No comments:
Post a Comment