A playful romp... at least, as much a playful romp as a horror movie about Halloween-centric blood and mayhem can be. Trick 'r Treat is a collection of short scenes of horror, all tied together in a loose concurrent timeline, that all occur one creepy Halloween night. For my money, this is what a lighthearted slasher film should be about.
What's interesting about this movie is that there are constant juxtapositions of innocence and evil. No one is who you think they are, and you can never quite tell when a villain will become a victim... and vice versa. And even more enjoyable is the fact that as a collection of intertwined short stories, you will see a glimpse of the other short stories in each story. This leads to some fun foreshadowing and playing with the viewers expectations -- after all, just because we know whats about to happen in another time line doesn't mean what's happening is what we think is happening.
For horror fans, this is a fun little flick. It isn't a hardcore slasher, but it does play around with 'naughty and nice' enough that it should give all horror fans a chuckle. Good fun, and very much recommended.
If you've ever wanted to know what is meant by "exploitation film," Run! Bitch Run! is exactly what that means. There have been some campy attempts to revive that particular genre of film (Bitch Slap and Black Dynamite come to mind), but for the most part those films have been done with a tongue-in-cheek approach that make them kind of fun. In fact, if the newer version of exploitation films are your only exposure to this genre, you will not be ready for this one. This movie is very brutal, but not in an artistic way. It is intentionally misogynistic as all of the violence, both by and against women, is intended for your viewing pleasure rather than for any sense of irony or social commentary. In short, this film is disturbing, disgusting, and probably shouldn't be watched by anyone.
