SAVAGE WEEKEND
By Raymond Knowby
This particularly boring stalk ‘n slash has two couples and a gay friend heading to a remote cabin to work on a boat restoration. While there, they meet a neighborly country man (a handlebar-mustached David Gale) and a skittish hick who seems to be overly fanatical about the prized sailing vessel being messed with (William Sanderson–yes, of Newhart). Of course, an unseen guest with motives all their own appears, donning a funky Halloween mask and taking out the surrounding characters in systematic fashion.
Bad execution is what really pulls this attempt down. The editing seems to be compensating for the fact that they just didn’t shoot enough material (see scene involving a ridiculous tango intercutting with repeated footage of the killer pacing in the nearby boathouse). The music is very “worst of the 70’s”, at times just lousy synth cues and at others particularly embarrassing porno-esque disco. Acting-wise everyone holds up ok, but the story just doesn’t go anywhere for it to matter.
Apparently, a troubled production forced this one to sit on a shelf for nearly seven years (it was shot in 1976, but wasn’t officially released until 1981 under this title). If you like shameless nudity, however, the uncut print is loaded with fleshy female leers. The kills are flimsily applied, although a table saw sequence has a nice ironic pay off.
This flick must not have been intended to be seen open frame–I don’t think I’ve ever caught so many boom microphone gaffs in one running time.
Amateur discount mask hour in 1981's SAVAGE WEEKEND.