Scout Taylor-Compton in a slasher akin to “Scream,” albeit low-budget

This was described by producers as “an ode to 80’s slashers,” which is true, but it has more in common with “Scream” from the mid-90s, walking the balance beam between serious slasher and semi-parody. Remember Henry Winkler's weird principal? You’ll get the same curiously hammy performances with the drama club teacher and the father at the party house. You also get the unnecessarily mean-spirited characters with a few exceptions, like the interesting long-haired janitor.

Scout is, of course, a highlight as the protagonist. She was soon-to-turn 30 during shooting and barely acceptable as a 17-18 years-old student, but this isn’t exactly uncommon in filmmaking seeing as how Roddy McDowall played a high school student when he was 36 in “Lord, Love a Duck.” Petite Kali Skatchke is another standout in the feminine department as Emma. There are a couple of other notables, but the director unfortunately didn’t know how to shoot women (no pun intended) in the manner of, say, the original “Friday the 13th” or “Slumber Party Massacre II.”

The story is a whodunnit and the revelation at the end is good; proficient writing on this front. I also liked the bird's beak plague mask for the killer. The gore’s well-done as well, for those who care. Unfortunately, there are some technical issues, like questionable dubbing and editing, which offers a kind of off-kilter viewing experience and smacks of inept or low-rent filmmaking.

Despite my criticisms, it’s entertaining enough to make it worth checking out for fans of the genre.

It was shot in Chicago and is short ‘n’ sweet at 1 hour, 14 minutes.