1990’s Deadly Manor begins, as so many slasher films do, with a road trip.
Tony (Greg Rhodes), Helen (Claudia Franjul), Rod (Mark Irish), Susan (Liz Hitchler), Peter (Jerry Kerion), and Anne (Kathleen Patane) are driving through upstate New York. Their ultimate destinate is a lake but they don’t really seem to have a very good grasp on how to actually get there. They stop to pick up a surly but sexy hitchhiker named Jack (Clark Tufts). Maybe Jack knows where the lake is! Actually, Jack is an escaped convict who is traveling with a gun but he doesn’t tell anyone else. He’s actually rather well-mannered for a fugitive.
With night falling and a storm approaching, the group decides to camp out for the night. When the car proves to be too small, they decide to break into a nearby mansion. The mansion has a wrecked car sitting in front of it and, on the inside, there’s all sorts of evidence that someone else has been staying there. The house is full of pictures of a beautiful woman. There’s also several pictures of a bunch of naked bikers, who all appear to be dead. Still, the group decides to spend the night because this is a slasher film and people do stupid things.
As you probably already guessed, the group is not alone. There’s a woman wearing a mask and walking around with a knife. Unlike most slasher villains, our killer here likes to keep things simple. She’s all about slashing throats. I actually found myself appreciating the fact that the movie stayed consistent as far as that was concerned. This isn’t the type of slasher movie where the killer somehow has a huge collection of weapons at their disposal and this also isn’t a movie where the killer drops a one liner with each kill. The kills come quickly and without a hint of playfulness or mercy. As for the throat slashings, they’re effective because the throat is such a vulnerable and uniquely exposed part of the body. I love my throat and I’d hate for anything bad to happen to it. The kill that always seems to get mentioned is one that takes place in slow motion towards the end of the film. That is a memorably gruesome moment but, for me, the most effective kill is one where the actual attack takes place off-screen and we only see the aftermath. It’s a moment that takes us by surprise and confirms that no one is safe inside the house.
When Deadly Manor started, I wasn’t expecting much from it. The characters were all incredibly dumb and the terrible dialogue didn’t do anyone any favors. Things picked up once they broke into the mansion. Yes, their decision to stay in the obviously dangerous mansion didn’t make much sense but the location itself was full of atmosphere and the killer was memorably odd. The film itself is full of small details, like an ever-widening crack on one of the walls, that eventually pay off in unexpected ways. Deadly Manor turns out to be a bit more engrossing than anyone would have any reason to suspect.
Deadly Manor didn’t shy away from blood and it didn’t shy away from nudity and it didn’t shy away from being a slasher film. After watching countless “modern” horror films that take themselves too seriously and almost seem to be apologizing for following the rules of the genre, there was something very entertaining about watching an old school, unapologetically sordid slasher like Deadly Manor.
