Blood Rage (1987) Review – A Cheesy and Gory Thanksgiving Slasher

Welcome to Knockout Horror. Today we are reviewing Blood Rage (1987).

80s slasher fun

The story follows a pair of twins, one of which is accused of murder and placed in a psychiatric hospital. Little do his accusers realise, it was actually his psychotic brother who was the killer. And now, 10 years later, he is about to go on a bloody rampage, just in time for Thanksgiving.

“Terry chops off hands, slices open heads, cuts people in half, and kills couples while they are making the beast-with-two-backs. It is traditional slasher fun.”

It goes without saying that today’s movie falls into the slasher genre. Blood Rage‘s alternative title is, actually, just that — “Slasher”. Blood Rage sees antagonist Terry go on a maniacal rampage ten years after framing his twin brother for murder. He chops off hands, slices open heads, cuts people in half, and kills couples while they are making the beast-with-two-backs. It is traditional slasher fun.

With this being said, there isn’t really a whole lot to analyse about this movie. It is as simple and straightforward as it gets. Man goes crazy, kills a lot of people, attempts to pin it on his brother. That is really all you need to know and what more could you want? This is a straightforward riot.

The fact that it is set at Thanksgiving is really the movie’s only unique hook… only, it isn’t really a hook because it is a bright and sunny November with few seasonal cues. Ah well!

Blood, guts, and boobs, oh my!

Blood Rage is filled with buckets of blood, or is it cranberry sauce? Terry is a relentless killer. He methodically carves his way through a whole bunch of the residents of Shadow Woods. From people looking to hook up, to Terry’s friends, and everyone in between. The kill count is pretty high because Terry is entirely ruthless; he’s on a mission to cause mayhem for no particular reason at all.

As with a lot of slashers from this era, everything is played for laughs. The violence is comical and will genuinely make you chuckle. Despite being graphic, it is done in such an obviously fake fashion that is simply isn’t that bad. Very fitting for the era. There are lots of guts and nasty bits that are a staple of the genre. Again, it’s all a bit comical and not very realistic. For the time, however, the effects look fantastic.

Naturally, this is an 80s slasher so expect some nudity. It seems like movies from this era featured at least one woman paid to get naked and then die. Viewed through a modern eye, it’s a bit silly but it is very fitting for the type of movie and the time. It’s not gratuitous nudity either, just a few boobs here and there. You know what to expect, right? Slashers were all about fast thrills; whether of the carnal variety or the carnage variety.

Pure Thanksgiving cheese

Blood Rage is a pretty damn cheesy movie. Terry saunters around with a comical swagger absolutely relishing every kill. He cracks wise on frequent occasions and a few of his lines are pretty iconic. He loves to torment his victims and, even in death, they don’t manage to escape his retro slasher wit. His enormous grin and wild eyes fit the character well and actually feel pretty unique. In an age where most slasher villains wore masks, Terry wore a smile.

“Blood Rage captures the 80s in an almost undistilled form. The only thing bigger than the fake blood budget here would have been the one for hairspray.”

On the other hand, Todd is ridiculously childlike and vulnerable. He looks at the world with a sense of curiosity. It’s as if he has been asleep for ten years and woken up in a different world. It makes for a fun dichotomy. We have got to mention Todd and Terry’s mum, Maddy. She works her way through about 6 bottles of wine. She distracts herself with housework and eating leftovers from the fridge in a hilariously comical fashion.

It feels as though Blood Rage captures the 80s in an almost undistilled form. Whereas movies like Friday the 13th have a somewhat timeless feel, Blood Rage is locked firmly in 83. The furniture and fashions are ridiculously retro, the synthesised beats wail in the background and the massive hair is even more noteworthy than the kills. The only thing bigger than the fake blood budget here would have been the one for hairspray. Blood Rage is something of an 80s time capsule.

Acting is…. what you would expect

Let’s be real, you can’t expect the acting here to be particularly good. It’s a low-budget 80s slasher. Still, it really isn’t all that bad. Mark Soper as Todd and Terry is having an absolute blast, that is completely obvious. Relishing the opportunity to play the evil Terry, Soper beams when delivering cheesy one liners.

Todd is played as more of a wide-eyed child. There is decent separation between the two characters. Soper’s performance is pretty mixed, however. At times he speaks in an unnecessarily exaggerated and strange manner. It can feel a bit odd. He plays the part for laughs and has a great time, though, which really shines through.

“The star performance is actually Louise Lasser as Terry’s mum Maddy. She plays the character with a mix of dramatic chops and perfectly executed comedy.”

Side characters are adequate pretty much throughout. Nobody stands out in any major way but they make for great killer fodder. The star performance is actually Louise Lasser as Terry’s mum Maddy. She plays the character with a mix of dramatic chops and perfectly executed comedy. Screaming down the phone line one moment to manically vacuuming the bedroom the next. She is so enjoyable in the role.

It’s a bit bad but lots of fun

Blood Rage is not an incredibly good movie. Hell, it’s not even an above average movie if I am honest. Even against slashers of the time it doesn’t hold up particularly well. It is, however, a lot of fun. It’s the perfect movie for Thanksgiving night as an alternative to the football.

There is no tension here and don’t expect any scares. Hell, don’t even bother attempting to find a cohesive plot. Characters are ridiculously stupid, editing is crap, camera work is shoddy, and the plot is holier than Jesus himself. The movie doesn’t really go anywhere and the script is an embarrassment. Being completely honest, Terry doesn’t even make for a scary horror villain. He is not intimidating and is just as stupid as his victims.

What we do have, however, is a slice of 80s slasher nostalgia. The time period is captured in its purest form. The body count is high, the kills are funny, and the effects look fantastic. Terry’s one liners are hilarious. Soper’s childlike joy at playing such a bastard of a character are truly endearing. Louise Lasser delights as Maddy and is a huge highlight of the film. Blood Rage is absolutely fine as long as you don’t expect much. It’s worth noting that you can find this movie on YouTube. It is heavily censored however, and makes for a tough watch.

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