Show of hands, please. How many of you went to camp and heard about Cropsey or the Claw or some other cabin-in-the-woods slasher story, with the narrator holding a flashlight under their chin for that low-budget spooky effect? Well, In A Violent Nature is like that, except it's told from Cropsey's perspective, for the most part. This time, the perpertrator is named Johnny.
It's a tale as old as time. Picked on kid meets violent end at the hands of bullies, and either he/she or a relative, or an undead ghost, or someone totally unrelated but with a taste for bloody murder who wants to use the legend for their own reasons, comes back and wreaks revenge on his torturers. Or on the townspeople. Or on his parents. Or on the girl who wouldn't give him a chance. Etc.
Usually, in these films, you identify with at least one of the victims-to-be. They're nice, or innocent, or weren't supposed to be in the area, etc. But here in this film, you just don't. Or at least, I did not. What a bunch of stupid nasties. I couldn't for the life of me figure out how this group were 
even friends, as they definitely did not like anyone else in the group. I mean, one even tosses away a set of car keys into the woods, in a fit of pique, just as they're wondering about where one of their buds have wandered off to. Personally, I couldn't wait for all the victims to get eliminated, if just to stop their whining. I mean, even the local who placed horrific legtraps throughout the woods to catch and maim innocent animals gets his just desserts. Yay!
Here's an example of how ridiculous the victims are. One, after seeing his buddy get an axe in the leg, comes up to him and says "are you ok?". I almost started laughing. I mean, that's such bad writing.
Creatively, Director Chris Nash and Cinematogropher Pierce Dirks did an excellent job of silently following the killer through the woods. Couldn't hear their footsteps behind him, among the crunching of the leaves and twittering of the birds. Based on some additional scenes, I'm thinking drones were utilized. The filmmakers also didn't scrimp on the sound effects. When the deadly weapons are being pulled through bodies, you hear every disgusting squelch and rip.
Geographically, though, Nash could have done a better job of following the killer tracking the victims. The sense of impending terror gets lost when you can't figure out where the prey is in relation to the hunter. Slasher Johnny (Ry Barrett) seems to be wandering in circles, and on both sides of the river, without any sense of direction, which mades the pacing of In A Violent Nature feel slow at times.
In the end, I didn't like or identify with a single victim, but that may be the point. The victims are generic and replaceable; the focus is all on Johnny. For that reason, I have to give credit to Chris Nash for trying something new in what has become a fairly predictable slasher genre.
Lisa Blanck is the Associate Editor / Movie Reviewer for In Focus-Magazine.com and is a member of the Critics Association of Central Florida. Her background includes 30+ years of digital editing for NBC and CBS News affiliates. She also edits national promotional spots for Matter Of Fact, the #1 nationally syndicated news & information program. For 30+ years she has covered the Florida Film Festival & the World Peace Film Festival, and has additional award-winning experience in advertising, marketing, promotions and live special events with MTV Networks.
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