A fun birthday weekend with your friends at an old house that happens to be in the middle of nowhere in the woods… what could go wrong? You guessed it, pretty much all of it. Murder in the Woods reminded me why I love slasher films. The perfectly timed music that sets the theme, a group of people out in the middle of nowhere continually split up, and bloody inventive deaths. This movie has all that while breaking diversity barriers and showing that POC characters do not always have to be cast in stereotypical roles. Director Luis Iga Garza mentions,
“I realized that this type of film had never been done in English for a mainstream audience, where Latinos and people of color are the leads, and they are not portrayed in stereotypical ways. This is why, while developing this indie feature, we were very conscious of making sure that there would be a diverse cast in lead roles.”
He was followed by Writer and Producer, Yelyna De León, adding,
“For us, it’s important for this story to be universal, but being Mexican-American, it was also important for the script to include cultural Latino references such as El Dia de los Muertos, The Chupacabras, and other stories that are recognizable. We purposely showed authentic moments, such as the altars to honor our ancestors, and blessings when we leave the house, memorable experiences that we share with our families.”
After the creepily playing of the opening credits, we are met with a guy running for his life in the woods. He falls to the ground in front of an old house, taking a moment to make a tourniquet for his bloody leg when car lights appear. But they are not there to help him. The blood on the front confirms it is what most likely hit and injured the guy. He goes into the house but is followed by someone with an ax. Next thing we know, it is the next day and all sunny.
That was just the opening for Murder in the Woods. Thanks to Think Jam, Nerds and Beyond were fortunate enough to have the opportunity to screen this film for review.
There will be spoilers beyond this point.
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