Intense, gripping, stylish and poignant

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

Behind the Mask: Directed by Scott Glosserman and written by Scott Glosserman and David J Stieve.This is a movie that I have heard about for years singing its praises and it peaked my interest. I never took the time to actually watch it. I finally broke down and watched the film. Boy am I glad I did. This is a delight. This is a mockumentary that also works as a legit slasher film. It switches back and forth between the mockumentary and an atmospheric slasher film. This movie is really funny first and foremost. It's funny just all by itself. It's even more funny if you're familiar with horror slasher films. It takes place in a world where Freddy, Jason and Michael Myers are real and operate unhinged from the police. Leslie wants to model himself after them and so he goes about training for his night to make his legend alongside his heroes. A journalism student in an attempt to make a name for herself follows him along with her crew. It takes you through the ropes of him setting up a realistic way of doing slasher scenes. It shows you his mentor.But the movie moves past the jokes and takes you into the slasher world itself. The jovial, fun loving Leslie becomes slasher movie villain Leslie who flips around and has a terrifying demeanor. It plays with convention and it brings a smile to this horror fan's face. I would highly recommend this movie to anyone. Just a good movie to watch and enjoy. I give this film a B.

The outfits in this film don't match a college documentary looking stereotype wardrobe. And, yes, I'm aware they made this on a shoestring budget, and they weren't thinking about that. For instance, the red trim of the windows, that makes my point look obvious. What were these actors and actresses told by the director, that's what I want to know. Where they told to scream and act nuts, or was some of that improv. Pointless subplots hang around every corner in a film like this, and this is no exception. For example, the batteries ... who cares? Why put dead batteries in the flashlights in the first place, and not just remove them completely? This is truly behind the scenes to the making of "Behind The Mask." I don't know a lot about this film, as far as where they filmed it, but it already makes me what to say, C' on dude, a farmhouse setting, really? It's been done a thousand times before. What were these guys thinking? We are going to make some cool art and turn it in for an A. Essentially, all it is is a tour of a horror set, at least, in the beginning, and then tips on what goes into, and how to make a horror slasher film. This holds back from an absence of horror, and we see the masked scythe welding lunatic a lot throughout the film, gracing us with his pleasures. Like a reoccurring nightmare ride, you can't get rid of Leslie Vernon. This film directed by Scott Glosserman has something for everybody. The idea is good, and the cast is fun to hangout with. And after a certain period the film takes a turn from an actual student project to the real deal. This creates the much needed tension, the spice to the food, if you will. A different mood surfaces in us, a suspension of disbelief is born, not only in  viewers, but as well as in the people on screen. So there you have it. A film complete with melodrama, tension and suspense, perfectly placed, in some places by Glosserman, as if he was laying out objects for a still-life painting. Also, I should mention the custom design of Leslie Vernon worked, but had we not learned who he was and what his aim was, it would have been all the more macabre. Okay, I took that last bit from the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I particularly enjoyed the effort of the crew. There references to Halloween, etc, that made the movie less serious, and gave good chuckle. This one was a little more hard core to handle though, opposed to Beetlejuice, or say A Werewolf in London, but I'm sure horror comedy fans would love it.

I have always been a fan of horror movies. Even as a small child I would sneak into the living room, and peer from behind the couch at the Freddie movie that the adults were watching. I still really enjoy all of the old 80s horror movies with the infamous larger- than-life serial killer.As an adult I also became a fan of mockumentaries. This is Spinal Tap, and Best in Show both brought to life the genius of Christopher Guest and introduced the world to documentaries gone mad. As a genre, it is typically only comedies that it showfronts.This movie merges the two genres but not in the way they'd have you believe. The movie begins with an interview between a very green newb journalist who seems to be doing a college project of some sorts. She wants to interview Leslie Vernon who believes himself the new Jason Voorhees, the new Freddie Kruger. As interesting interview subjects go, you can't really tell as the viewer if this guy is just a giant douche bag, or if they are just poking fun at the movie serial killer genre as a whole. Are we meant to take him seriously as he describes how to stalk and get-to-know his newest obsession, his proposed subject?Then something amazing happens. After his description of how to be a killer, the movie shifts entirely. Enter music, effects, dramatic acting, and all things you would expect from a horror movie. The movie, which was a shaky-cam low budget documentary, becomes a horror movie – if only for a scene while his plan (previously described to you in detail) sets into action.And this is how the movie plays out. We cut from documentary style to horror movie and back and forth until his movie and story are told. Its akin to watching a horror movie DVD special edition – if all the behind the scenes were cut into the film itself.Its not something I have ever seen before or since. And it was worth every single minute.

Hard to place this film in category. The best, I think, would be thriller, but this is a very different beast to other movies in the category. It is NOT really a slasher movie, nor a parody of one. It all starts with a young female journalist coming to a small town to report and document the birth of a legendary serial killer myth. The killer explains to her how he chooses his victim, how he plans and sets the stage for the whole sadistic game and how he executes it in his attempt to become the successor of Meyers, Kruger and Vorhees.In a way, the movie reminded me of Cabin in the Woods with the way it explains elements from most slashers. It's monumentally funny to see a very likable character, all nervous and excited and making tremendous professional effort to be the best in "the business".Now I can't spoil the movie by telling you too much about the film, but enough to say that I found the main character to be a very promising actor and the film having a high quality that I didn't expect. Not many movies today make the effort to create an ingenious script that uses hints and clues that are left for the viewer to also figure out. This one did.Too bad the marketing for the movie was not to the level of its quality. I wish I had known about it sooner. I highly recommend it.