Customer Reviews

Murder Party

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This is probably the funniest "horror" movie I've ever seen -- and it is THE perfect flick for your upcoming Halloween party (provided your friends are intelligent enough to appreciate the humor).

Without giving away too much of the plot, I'll try to tell you what I can about this monumental cinematic achievement. The box describes Murder Party as "Napoleon Dynamite meets Texas Chainsaw Massacre", which is somewhat accurate -- but I was expecting something much different (gratutious & meaningless violence), and was pleasantly surprised to discover that the writing, directing, acting, photography, special makeup FX, and limited use of digital effects were all top notch. Not bad for an indy film with minimal budget. It was very obvious that these good folks enjoyed working on this project very much -- unlike the joyless and soulless dreck being churned out by major studios nowadays.

In short, doofus loner is walking home from work to spend Halloween night alone in his apartment watching videos. The wind blows something along the sidewalk which he picks up: lo and behold, a hand engraved invite to a Murder Party -- with the ominous direction, "come alone." Doofus decides to make a "knight in armor" costume out of cardboard boxes and duct tape before proceeding to his rendezvous with destiny -- in the spookidy abandoned warehouse district.

Upon his arrival, he finds a demented cell group of drug abusing art school dropouts who thought it'd be funny to joke about killing someone in the name of Art. "We didn't think anyone would be stupid enough to actually show up!" Darwin's Law of Natural Selection in action. Anyhow, mayhem ensues, then an accidental death turns things "serious" -- and then things skid completely out of control: after which they exit the warehouse and hit the streets running.

Two of the art school dropouts' costumes were straight out of early cult cinema: replicant "Pris" from Blade Runner, and one of the baseball mimes from The Warriors. The baseball mime is a painter who is totally psychotic -- possibly in real life, as well. The scene where he goes nuts with an axe was actually a bit scary, because apparently HE WASN'T ACTING (the director said that all this terrifyingly vile stuff was coming out of his mouth that they needed to edit out of the soundtrack). Then, when he was being interviewed in the Special Features without his makeup, his face reminded me of a fellow I knew back in high school (also an actor) who was psychotic for real. He'd be just having a normal conversation when suddenly his eyes would glaze over and he'd go all zombie-nutso, not saying a word as he stared straight ahead with a blank expression as he tried to kill you . . . but I digress.

Anyhow, this film has the most realistic depictions of brain trauma that I've ever seen in a horror film (contrary to popular belief, it generally is not an instant kill, and victims can remain standing and semi-lucid after taking a mortal injury: one young lady asks if anyone smells "freshly mown grass" after a puncture of the temporal lobe, and another fellow gets really pissed off after being shot twice in the head with a low powered Makarov). The chainsaw special FX was very well done -- and you won't guess how they did it until you watch the Special Features. And -- most importantly -- Murder Party has THE ABSOLUTE BEST ENDING I'VE EVER SEEN IN ANY MOVIE OF ANY GENRE. Not a "surprise twist" at all -- just very understated, quite realistic, and probably the only way this movie could've ended. I sat there with my mouth open for a few moments, then, upon realizing the movie was over, laughed and laughed and realized it was pure genius.

"Murder Party" will be to Halloween what "A Christmas Story" was to Xmas -- a cult classic which you must purchase to watch every year at your Halloween Party.

There is an offbeat vibe to "Murder Party" and I had the sense that I was not quite in on the joke while watching this 2007 horror comedy. Then I checked out the special features afterwards and watched "Extreme Truth: The Making of 'Murder Party,'" and discovered that most of the principle characters in this movie have known each other when they were kids, when they spent their free time making movies with a VHS camera. You know how M. Night Shyamalan usually throws one of the films he made as a kid on his DVDs? Well, all we get here are clips of their adolescent attempts at blood and gore recorded for posterity on videotape, you do get a real sense of the fun they had killing each other and employing rudimentary special effects. Many years later, after having gone their separate ways to various film schools, they have reunited as The Lab of Madness and produced "Murder Party." So if the people you see on screen seem less like professional actors and more like kids running amuck in a candy store, there is a reason you are picking up on that vibe.

The film takes place on Halloween night in Brooklyn, where a windswept invitation to a party ends up in the hands of hapless Christopher S. Hawley (Chris Sharp). Creating a carboard costume as "The Brown Night," Chris leaves his cat Sir Lancelot and a bowl of candy corn behind and goes off to the party alone, as instructed. Once he arrives at the Murder Party he discovers it is called that because the group of misfit waiting for him intend to kill him in the name of their art. Well, actually their goal is to get money from their rich patron, who they think will be impressed by a ritualistic killing as an example of cutting-edge performance art. Suffice it to say that things do not go as planned.

"Murder Party" is decidedly a tongue in cheek horror comedy and as such is most definitely a hit or miss proposition. Some will embrace the film as a prime candidate for Midnight Movie status and others will be sorry they ever checked it out. But the film proudly proclaims itself to be the winner of the Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature at the 2007 Slamdance Film Festival, which sounds pretty impressive and like something fans of the genre should check out. Then again, the other Audience Award went to "Commode Creations: The Artwork of Barney Smith" for Best Anarchy Film, so who knows what the mind set, let alone the mental stability, of this particular audience might have been when they voted. The gags with the gore are better than the attempts at humor, but I liked the tongue in cheek approach and the idea that if the hole you are digging for yourself keeps getting bigger, why not embrace it and go along for the ride?

"Dead and Breakfast" remains my personal favorite when it comes to nominating a horror comedy to be the next Midnight Movie, but "Murder Party" is a decent honorable mention. The DVD extras include commentary "featuring The Lab of Madness," which is more retrospective than introspective, but mainly because you get the feeling the gang cannot really wrap their minds around the fact they actually got to make a real movie. There are a few outtakes and bloopers (you would have expected more and you get the feeling these guys found these clips funnier than we do), instructions on "How to Make Your Own Brown Knight Costume," and "Pumpkin Bread Recipe" and "Valediction in Black: Lexi's Art Installation Video" (i.e., the film within the film). "Murder Party" may not be your cup of team, but it should not prove to be a jug of Acetic Acid either.

Magnolia Films is definately one to watch for great horror films. 1st "Severance" (check out that film too if you haven't already) & now this, they're on a winning streak for great horror. "Murder Party" is really more of a comedy than anything, but definately has it's fare share of grizzly blood & gore for even the most hardened of gore hounds. Murder Party is about a lonely nerd type who happens upon an invitation around Halloween. He gets all dressed up in a ridiculous cardboard costume & is off for the "Murder Party" with Pumpkin Raisen bread in tow. It turns out some weirdo artsy fartsy types have set up to murder whoever arrives with this invite. That's all you really need to know as not to spoil anything. It kinda reminded me of "Bottle Rocket" (another movie you should check out if you haven't already seen it) only with murder & more blood & guts. The acting, directing & make-up/special effects are all spot on. You'll love every minute of this film!!! Do Not Miss This Movie, it's destined to be a cult classic!!!

"oh, i didn't like this movie because i have no imagination and am incapable of enjoying good dialogue and atmosphere...i just want to look at blood and stuff! and seriously, no vampires in leather trench coats anywhere? WTF?!" - jackass reviewers
holy crap i love the internet for its ability to let morons expose themselves.

watch this movie. done on a small budget by a group of guys who have making movies together since there were children. the acting, directing, writing...everything about this movie was so well done that huge budget hollywood directors should be watching this and taking notes.

MURDER PARTY is a great little Independent Horror entry, even if it does play off of obvious homages and borrowed techniques. A clueless do-gooder finds an invitation to a "Murder Party" on Halloween, but he realizes he should have passed when the invitation turns out to be all too literal. The group of pretentious art students he stumbles upon tie him up and argue over how they plan to kill him in the name of art. The strength of the film lies in the hilarious physical humor played out through the subtle character nuances, particularly those of our hero knight. Audience members will immediately recall the various Halloween costumes of the antagonists that are borrowed from classics like BLADE RUNNER and THE WARRIORS, and there are many clever quips that Horror and SciFi geeks will giggle over. After a steady build, the final act is soaked in several gory deaths, complete with chainsaws, decapitations, and beatings. The small warehouse setting feels much more expansive due to the close shots and angled framing. Though the knight has minimal dialog, his few lines are smart and very funny, and his character is played out through his facial expressions. Much of the dialog between the other characters can feel forced at times, but there is still plenty of fun to be had. While it draws from many superior films, director Jeremy Saulnier has taken all the right notes and turned them into a sharp and brutal little Horror Comedy that is sure to please any genre fan.

-Carl Manes
I Like Horror Movies

WHAT A FILM!!! SO RIGHT UP MY ALLEY!!! AND LIKE I THOUGHT, ITS A MODERN VERSION OF BUCKET OF BLOOD IN A WAY. A GROUP OF BUMBLING IDIOTS WHO FANCY THEMSELVES AS A GROUP OF ART HIPSTERS, PRETENTIOUS ART HIPSTERS AT THAT! LOL.

The main character (well, the "victim") Chris- is like Walter from Bucket of Blood in the sense that he is the lonely guy looking to fit in- oh and the whole pancake mix thing in the beginning that was used in Bucket of Blood. The whole murder as art thing.

I loved the whole pretentious "hipper than thou" spin with all the characters- minus Chris that is. Speaking of Chris- what was up with that cardboard costume? LOL. Hello Monty Python!!! One of my favorite lines was "I didn't sign up for a second degree assault party". I love that. Cause its clear they also didn't sign up for a murder party. Not really. Just trying to fit in, be "different" in that hipster kinda way and do loads of drugs that keep them all as clueless as they are sober and how all the drugs make them all turn on each other (as if they cared about each other to begin with! well besides Popsicle boy) Oh and the nonchalant attitude when the girl, their friend dies in the beginning of the party....its like oops! lol Same attitude when everyone dies!

A total dark comedy!!! It took till the ending for all hell to break loose!!

Something very funny to me was the stunned expression on every one's face when someone actually showed up to their "Murder Party" and all the times they reminded each other not to use cell phones during a crime! And the whole "truth drug" sequence!!! And all this work and effort to impress the great Alexander (the most fake hipster of them all!) and his sidekick/drug dealer! and his alleged grant money! Hell ALL these characters were just great, just totally CARZY LUNATICS! Truth and Dare games with the guy your gonna "kill". LOL. THE GUY CARRYING AROUND THE POPSICLE STICK! LOL. All of them just trying to fit in really. And the most insecure group ever!

This is right up there on my favorite film list! Just fell right into it straight away. The sad part is I see me in these people.....I was a pretentious "hipster" in my 20s *************insert shame here************ and that's probably why I found this film so funny, I can laugh at myself about it all now but then I thought I was as smart, interesting and innovative as this group does (but hey! the good news is I grew up to be a smart, interesting and innovative sorta chick anyway!! LOL).

This was a highly entertaining film. Essentially, an immensely dorky, loner type randomly finds a halloween "murder party" invitation, only to realize after its too late that he's the sole invitee to a party for his own murder. However, the fun is in the details, particularly how the hosts intend to kill this guy, and their bumbled attempts at doing so, as well as the murder-ee's own bumbled attempts at escape. But its more than the story that makes this movie fun. The script is for sure smart and wittingly humorous, but its also pensively slow in an paradoxically amusing way too. Well directed and amusing in a very quirky way.

Every single time I see a movie I really, really want to like it. I want it to be the next SLASHERS or NIGHT FEEDERS or FIDO. I want it to knock my metaphorical socks off and I want to go to my grave 30 years from now cherishing the memory of the day I saw it for the time! Yep, every single time. Even though I've been burned by OTIS and SEVERANCE and zillions of other "horror comedies" that everyone else liked but which left me cold, Still I approached MURDER PARTY with the same hopeful feeling that I was about to discover a gem, a diamond in the rough. Yeah. And you know what? I loved this little independent sucker to death!

The story centers around Christoper a pathetic loner(a milquetoast dominated even by his own cat, Sir Lancelot), who while walking home from the video store after work on Halloween happens upon an invitation to a party, a "murder party"--at the bottom of the invitation are the ominous words "come alone". Intrigued by the invitation (and unable to encourage his cat to get off one chair in the living room) Christopher decides to break out of his shell. He locates the party's address on his computer, bakes some pumpkin bread, makes a knight's costume out of a cardboard box (after throwing out the perfectly good monster costume the box contained), and sets out for a night of fun. Or so he thinks.

The other party goers are; Lexi who's dressed as Priss from BLADE RUNNER, Macon in a werewolf mask, the obviously psychotic Bill as one of the baseball mimes from THE WARRIORS, Sky is the ubitquitous the cheerleader, and Paul who's doing the romantic 19th century vampire bit. And they are all quite surprised when Christopher shows up bearing gifts of pumpkin bread. They are simply stunned that anyone would be stupid enough to actually show up for something called a "murder" party, and before he knows it Christopher is bound and gagged and tied to a chair. It seems that they are all avant garde artists intent upon impressing someone named Alexander who has $300,000 worth of grant money to disperse, and what better way to do it than murder someone (guess who?) in an appropriately artistic manner. After they discuss various art concepts vis a vis Christopher's dead body, Sky pipes up. She isn't totally down with the murder thing and says she has an even better idea that won't involve killing anyone, but before she can divest herself of said idea she gets dizzy, falls on a handy pick axe sustains a fatal head wound, gets up and says "Smells like cut grass" and promptly falls over dead. (Wow, I didn't see that one coming!) It seems she had been eating the pumpkin bread and was allergic to the preservatives in the raisins. MURDER PARTY is full of surprises and that's one of the biggest selling points any movie can have in my book.

Originality, creativity, and a sense of humor (the Holy Trinity), all traits which are sadly lacking in mainstream films lately but which can still be found from time to time in low budget indies such as this. MURDER PARTY also has a tight, well written story with actual character development courtesy of Jeremy Saulnier who not only wrote and directed but also acted as executive producer AND director of photography in his spare time. That's a trademark of the indie, everybody is doing at least double duty; Paul Bartlett not only played Paul in the flick he was did the make up and special effects and everyone kicked in their own money to finance the film, it was completely self-produced. And its this kind of involvement in every level of the film's production that gives the indies their special sense of life--there's love and passion oozing out of every frame in flix like this. That's what makes them so irresistible. There's also some pretty good acting here too, with several actors deserving of special mention, among them; Chris Sharp as our hapless hero, William Lacey as the psychotic Bill, and Puff Snooty as Sir Lancelot the cat without whom they would have been unable to have filmed one of the best finales in motion picture history. Bravo Puff!

I highly recommend this one, although a 4 and 1/2 is nearer the mark than 5 stars. Sorry D Wili.

Murder party is one of the funniest movies I've seen. It is all around good movie, It's actually Awesome!
"Everybody Dies!"

The premise for this movie sounded like a lot of fun, and the DVD cover art is just too cool, so I had to pick this up when I saw it. I wasn't expecting a whole lot, probably just a fun B movie, but what I got was an irreverent, hilarious, over the top gore fest, I loved it. The comedy is just so off-kilter it works splendidly with the bizarre happenings of the movie. I haven't laughed this much with a horror movie since Shaun of the Dead. Completely different subject matter mind you, but this is another movie that flawlessly mixes comedy with horror, making it a real treat. And when the violence really comes into play, it hits so hard it just blew me away. So in closing, this is a very unique movie in it's exceptional blending of genres and original plot. Gorehounds will not be disappointed either, plenty of the red stuff to go around.