A young boy, playing in his papa's barn, witnesses his grandfather Jethro's secret operation..extracting human blood from victims he wheels in on a gurney to supply that special ingredient which is said to help the crops multiply(..a form of voodoo adopted by superstitious farmers desperate for successful crops). When grandpa wishes to *scold* the child, a lantern turns over setting fire to the hay within the barn. The boy escapes but Jethro is not so lucky..engulfed in flames, we figure his fate is sealed. We later find that a couple driving to a costume party, nearly hitting a cow in the road, bursting through a fence into a field, fall prey to a psycho, donning the disguise of a scarecrow, wielding a scythe. Later, we discover that the child has fully grown into the lead singer of a rock band called, appropriately enough, Slash. Mac(James O'Shea), after performing a gig, receives word from "paw" that his aunt had passed from farmhand, Billy Bob(Nick Boraine). Taken from his father's farm by his mother, Mac decides to attend his aunt's funeral, and thus reawakening the painful memory he had buried regarding Jethro and that traumatic day in the barn. Mac's father, Jeremiah(Steve Railsback), is proud to have his son home, despite the ordeal that prompted his return. Mac's band come with him, their tour bus pulling into Jeremiah's farm presenting quite a contrast, to say the least. But, Mac finds that he enjoys spending time here despite his band's reservations towards such a rural setting. Particularly token black character, Jesse(Jocelyn Broderick), who certainly feels out of place, representing your typical thuggish stereotype, even carrying a gun on his person. When the *scarecrow killer* targets his posse, Mac will have to decide which is his true family, pops or the band. In a major development, the tour bus has been tampered with the injector pump damaged by someone, obviously the killer. It seems that Jeremiah's harvest just might bring forth plentiful crops..
I'm such a fan of Steve Railsback that I'll just about watch any type of dire entertainment he participates in. Slash is a very tame slasher movie with typically obnoxious characters, the geeky band members & their roadies. Railsback has a little fun with his redneck farmer role, another stereotype very similar to his ED Gein portrayal. As he's entering old age, Railsback sounds a lot like Walter Brennan. I enjoyed how the director shoots him and Railsback understands just how to deliver his corny hick dialogue with just the right amount of aplomb. Nick Boraine amazingly injects a nice amount of innocence and amiability to his stereotypical role of dirty-teethed, filthy farmhand Billy Bob, often the object of Jesse's ridicule. The film really plays off the theme of clashing worlds..the "fish out of water" division between the urban and rural. The killer mostly commits his murderous deeds off-screen with director Neal Sundström pulling his camera back probably due to lack of funds. An ax is also used on victims. My favorite kill-scene would be when the killer chases after the remaining members of the band, not yet murdered, with a crop machine "threshing" one victim, with the remains "fertilizing" the field! No nudity although a female groupie, who travels with the band, does have sex with the guitarist(..it, just like the murders, is filmed in a rather tame manner). I suggest watching this slasher for Railsback, who really provides most of the entertainment. The film presents three likely possibilities of who the killer might be..Billy Bob, Mac, and, of course, Jeremiah. Although you might be minorly surprised at who it is, you won't be blown to smithereens when his identity is uncovered.
I'm such a fan of Steve Railsback that I'll just about watch any type of dire entertainment he participates in. Slash is a very tame slasher movie with typically obnoxious characters, the geeky band members & their roadies. Railsback has a little fun with his redneck farmer role, another stereotype very similar to his ED Gein portrayal. As he's entering old age, Railsback sounds a lot like Walter Brennan. I enjoyed how the director shoots him and Railsback understands just how to deliver his corny hick dialogue with just the right amount of aplomb. Nick Boraine amazingly injects a nice amount of innocence and amiability to his stereotypical role of dirty-teethed, filthy farmhand Billy Bob, often the object of Jesse's ridicule. The film really plays off the theme of clashing worlds..the "fish out of water" division between the urban and rural. The killer mostly commits his murderous deeds off-screen with director Neal Sundström pulling his camera back probably due to lack of funds. An ax is also used on victims. My favorite kill-scene would be when the killer chases after the remaining members of the band, not yet murdered, with a crop machine "threshing" one victim, with the remains "fertilizing" the field! No nudity although a female groupie, who travels with the band, does have sex with the guitarist(..it, just like the murders, is filmed in a rather tame manner). I suggest watching this slasher for Railsback, who really provides most of the entertainment. The film presents three likely possibilities of who the killer might be..Billy Bob, Mac, and, of course, Jeremiah. Although you might be minorly surprised at who it is, you won't be blown to smithereens when his identity is uncovered.