DIRECTOR Calum Waddell STARS Emily Booth; Tom Holland; Fred Olen Ray DVD 13 May
As a love letter to the maligned slasher subgenre, Slice & Dice is an articulate missive that, while presenting nothing new for the au fait, will have you scrabbling to complete your collection, simply by virtue of an infectious enthusiasm from the participants on screen.
The documentary’s greatest strength is an excellent editing job. Perfectly timed, illustrative examples pulled as clips, trailers and cover art punctuate a well paced talking-head format — a good selection, including Tobe Hooper, Jeffrey Reddick and Adam Green. From thoughts on the first slasher, be it Psycho, Peeping Tom, or Bay of Blood, a fittingly formulaic, chapter approach largely focuses on the classic tropes of the slasher, moving through the rules for not getting killed, what makes for a good villain and, of course, the Final Girl.
All enjoyable enough, however the feel is very much a fond nostalgia as opposed to a true study of the subgenre. More meat is to be found in the outtakes, from J.S. Cardone, Adam Green and Kevin Tenney, and the commentary track from director Calum Waddell and producer Justin Kerswell — although, the latter feels a tad unnatural over the talking heads. True Slice & Dice is far from essential, but it is certainly a fun ride that will have you pine for yesteryear. Some very good extras — including a 45-minute trailer park (also with commentary) and featurette “Don’t Go in the Backwoods” complete the package.
