Cannibal Campout (1988) (V)

Directors:

Tom Fisher
Jon McBride

Writer:

John Rayl (writer)

Genre:

Horror

Tagline:

Friends don't let friends eat friends

Plot:

Four teenagers on an outing in the woods are attacked by a trio of mutant cannibals.

Plot Keywords:

Broken Bottle | Youth | Splatter | Glasses | Van

Cast

Jon McBride	...	Jon
Amy Chludzinski	...	Amy
Christopher A. Granger	...	Chris (as Christopher Granger)
Richard Marcus	...	Rich
Gene Robbins	...	Gene
Carrie Lindell	...	Carrie
Joseph Salheb	...	Joe
Nancy Sciarra	...	Nancy, first victim
Ray Angelic	...	Ray - third victim
John Farrell	...	John - second victim

Directed by
Tom Fisher
Jon McBride

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
John Rayl		writer

Produced by
Tom Fisher	....	producer
Jon McBride	....	producer
Marshall Peck	....	associate producer
Joseph Salheb	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Christopher A. Granger

Cinematography by
Tom Fisher

Film Editing by
Jon McBride

Makeup Department
Joseph Salheb	....	special makeup effects artist

Camera and Electrical Department
Fred Wittenberg	....	grip

Editorial Department
Joseph Salheb	....	assistant editor

Distributors

• Donna Michelle Productions (1988) (USA) (VHS)
• Intercoast Video (1988) (USA) (VHS)
• Camp Motion Pictures (2007) (USA) (DVD)
• Phoenix Distributors

Runtime:

89 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Unrated

Filming Locations:

New Jersey, USA

Trivia:

Most of the movie was filmed guerrilla-style, meaning no permits and lots of secret locations. While filming the scene where Amy Chludzinski is being pursued through the woods by a knife-wielding cannibal, a New Jersey Forest Ranger unknowingly stumbled onto the set. Director Jon McBride immediately halted production for fear the Ranger might get the wrong idea and actually shoot somebody.

Quotes:

Rich: [after killing Carrie] Soup's on!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Back to the Farm: The Making of 'Splatter Farm' (2007) (V)

Beware of any movie where the actors use their real first names for their characters.

A long time ago, well back during the 1980's anyway, when if you had 6 friends, a camcorder and a long weekend with nothing to do you could make a movie for there were distributors who, for a hefty share of the profits, would sell it mail order for you. This resulted in a lot of movies hitting the video shelves. Oh sure, they hung around for a while but then most of the sank into the obscurity they so richly deserved. Of course now DVD is playing the role of . . . dare I say it? . . . re-animator and these movies are being resurrected for another go round.

All of which brings me to the movie I am here tonight to talk about. Submitted for your approval, CANNIBAL CAMPOUT.

Stop me if you've heard this one before: 4 best pals hit the road for a weekend of fun, take the wrong road and run into some geeky rural types who mean nothing but trouble. What? You've this plot already? Imagine my surprise! One of the characters even looks at the cannibal clan and remarks "Here come the guys from DELIVERANCE." before the trouble really starts. Our villains are cannibals but they have a good reason for their eccentric eating habits; their mother taught them that fast food and store bought food was full of chemicals and the fresher their meat the better. (I'll give you a moment to groan out loud if you wish.)

The plot is predictable in all ways but one. The female lead (Amy Chludzinsky) takes this outing to break the news to her boyfriend that she is pregnant. So right away you think that she at least is going to make it to the end of the picture, right? Well I won't spoil it for you but remember this is an indie picture not released by a major studio so it is best to approach it knowing all bets are off. The characters all have the IQ of meatloaf (the dinner, not the singer) the gore is bargain basement the acting is . . . well . . . what can you expect? One of the forest dwelling cannibals wears a mask for the whole picture and when he finally pulls it off you get a quick look at his mutated face. It is only a brief glimpse but I could swear he was wearing a Toxic Avenger mask!

This movie is soon to be re-released on DVD. Get it if you must. As for me; been there, done that, lucky to still have intact brain cells.