Rituals

source: Rituals

After being absolutely stunned by how good "Hunter's Blood", another "Deliverance" clone was, I had great expectations for "Rituals". It is however, almost a total misfire. The character development is nonexistent, there is way too much meaningless chattering between the five doctors, and all of the night scenes are so dark due to a lab error, that it is impossible to tell what is going on. If you like watching bad acting, tedious dialog, frequent blackouts of the screen, and an unseen menace, then this is the movie for you. I rate "Deliverance" 7.5, "Hunter's Blood" 6.0, and "Rituals" 4.0, for all of the above reasons. - MERK

Five doctor friends go hiking in the wilderness where they are stalked and terrorized by an unseen killer. Rituals, also known as The Creeper, is a rather forgotten and underrated early slasher flick. While the premise may seem like the formula, stereotype backwoods killer story this film actually came along before the time of Friday the 13th and its countless followers. Rituals really owes its inspiration in part to Deliverance, but it is hardly the rip-off of that classic movie that some critics would have you think. It has a gritty, low budget atmosphere and some effectively nightmarish moments in its plot (head on a stick, anyone?). The film is also rather gruesome, particularly in the rare uncut version of the film. It has plenty of creepy mood to keep it from being the routine slasher outing. However there are a few flaws. First, in all versions of the film that I've ever seen the lighting in the climax of the movie is so dim that it's difficult to understand what is happening. Second, the plot is very thinly written and the characters aren't sympathetic in the slightest. Also, the editing is very rough. Never the less, the effective atmosphere and chills come to the rescue and save this woodsy slasher. Not bad, but best enjoyed by the dedicated horror fans. ** 1/2 out of ****

The excellent Hal Holbrook leads a fine cast of relative unknowns in a fight for survival against a deranged killer amidst the natural dangers of the Canadian wilderness. Holbrook plays Harry, one of a group of five middle-aged surgeons who take to the 'great outdoors' for a spot of fishing and hiking, but wind up being hunted by a mysterious killer with a grudge against doctors. Rather than spending a relaxing six days away from the sight of flesh and blood, the guys see just as much as ever—only this time it's their own! Featuring credible acting throughout, natural dialogue, a well developed sense of dread, great use of stunning scenery, and some disturbing scenes of visceral violence (including a particularly gruesome severed head on a stick), little known Canadian horror Rituals is one of the best that the backwoods slasher/survivalist sub-genre has to offer—not quite rivalling the brilliance of John Boorman's Deliverance perhaps, but deserving of a much wider audience than it currently has (as I type, the film has only 29 reviews on IMDb, compared with Deliverance's 283). One could reasonably complain that the film's lack of exposition leads to confusion about the precise motive of the killer, thus detracting a little from the film's overall effectiveness, but even taking this into consideration, Rituals is still a tense, gruelling, eerie, and atmospheric chiller well worth hunting down.

That is all I was able to gleen from this movie. There were many knocking possibilities but absolutely none of them were answered. Too bad. Even Hal Holbrook couldn't pull this one out of the steaming heap. Perhaps all the money went to pay him, who knows. Maybe I missed the knot at the end which tied it all together; the copy I watched made a kinescope look like hi-def. Watch some other option from the "lost in the wild while running for your life" genre because this one will just drive you into the backwoods to escape its ineptitude.

Obviously modeled after the earlier hit DELIVERANCE (1972), the Canadian produced RITUALS manages to set itself apart and puts a unique twist on the blooming 70s backwoods slasher genre. Like the Boorman film, RITUALS showcases the clash between big city types and backwoods folk. But whereas DELIEVERANCE featured men coming together due to their horrific situation, RITUALS shows them falling apart. The characters in this film shatter the moment they fall into danger, arguing at every moment and even refusing to help their wounded brethren. This realistic portrayal of trauma helps to lay on a much more literal war allegory (right down to the perverse reason for the murders). Director Peter Carter starts things off calm (albeit a bit slow) as the men are dropped off at their location but increases the intensity with each encounter with the killer (enemy). By the end of the film, sole survivor Hal Holbrook looks like he has been through a war (and oddly resembles Charlie Sheen at the end of PLATOON). Subtle hints are dropped throughout the film about the doctors' service time in Korea. As the eerie events begin happening, one doctor even theorizes that the group might be being stalked for one of their past medical transgressions. But, as the killer gets closer, he begins leaving clues in the form of medals and x-rays revealing he is a wounded World War II veteran looking to unleash his unrequited anger at the doctors who harmed him on this group of medical professionals. Made in 1976, RITUALS beat most backwoods slashers to the punch, even though it did not see theatrical release for several years after completion. In fact, Jeff Lieberman's JUST BEFORE DAWN owes quite a bit to this film, playing almost like a remake of RITUALS right down to the twist of two brothers being in the woods (although only one is a killer here). For a film that debuted before the slasher craze, RITUALS is surprisingly violent in its last half hour. There are stabbings, burnings, shotgun blasts and a great shock involving a severed head. Two versions of RITUALS are floating around. One, released by Embassy in the US, is a cut down version that runs 89 minutes which obscures/cuts the violence and cursing. The uncut version running 100 minutes can be found on the Canadian label Astral Bellevue.

I thought this was a very well-acted, believable and absorbing film. It's is a crime that there is not yet a DVD release of this title. It is very similar to DELIVERANCE in many respects, but with more of a horror-movie feel. Five doctors take their annual camping trip into the thick wilderness of "The Cauldron," a huge, basin-like spot in the forest which was formed, according to Native American legend, when the moon once bumped into the earth. Things go from bad to worse to horrifying for the doctors, as they're faced with a trip through hell brought upon by an unseen, unknown stalker. If you're a horror fan, this is a forgotten gem. Highly recommended for fans of backwoods slashers.

A quintet of physicians played by a motley assortment of middle-aged actors with varying degrees of prestige -- the inestimable, slightly out of his element, but still very fine Hal Holbrook, unsung Canadian B-movie favorite Lawrence ("Scanners," "Happy Birthday to Me") Dane, Robin Gammel, Ken James and Gary ("Muder by Phone") Reineke -- go hiking into "The Cauldron of the Moon," a beauteous, but remote Ontario, Canada wilderness area. The five M.D.s are soon stuck in the woods and have their very lives jeopardized when a hulking, vengeful, deranged hayseed (the hairy, enormous and extremely imposing Michael Zeroy) steals their boots, thereby rendering them helpless and vulnerable. Moreover, the docs are placed in a richly ironic position that's in striking contrast with their profession: Instead of saving lives they now have to take them so they can continue living. Peter Carter's rather erratic direction of this low-budget Canadian "Deliverance" variant runs hot and cold throughout: the opening third suffers from draggy pacing and an overabundance of tedious talk, but a goodly amount of nerve-jangling suspense is expertly developed and sustained, the final confrontation between the beleaguered doctors and the berserk backwoods nutjobs qualifies as the kind of potently visceral gut-tearing stuff the worst nightmares stem from, and the shockingly sudden outbursts of brutal violence posses a certain raw, almost primal power (the scene where Holbrook self-cauterizes a gushing, potentially fatal femoral artery wound with some gunpowder and a match -- ouch! -- is sure to make you wince). The uniformly stand-out acting most definitely carries the day as well, with particularly praiseworthy turns by a game, unexpectedly fit'n'physical Holbrook and the grossly underrated Dane. Although it's pretty rough around the edges and far from perfect, "Rituals" nonetheless still rates as a gritty, absorbing and harrowing entry in the once prospering, now sadly defunct "Deliverance"-inspired "Hey Bubba, let's go kill us some pesky cityfolk" action/survivalist evil hillbilly movie sub-genre.

Just caught this one on T.V. I was surprised how much I enjoyed it. The low budget works in its favor. It really gives this movie a realistic feel. Excellent, naturalistic performances by Holbrook, Robin Gammell and (actor-producer) Lawrence Dane, as a bunch of rather ordinary guys caught in extraordinary circumstances. I particularly liked the fact that the killer's motivations are suggested, but never fully explained. The setting and cinematography, particularly during the night scenes, are pretty creepy. All in all, if you're a fan of subtle, realistic, quality horror, check this one out. Kind of surprised Ebert gave this a thumbs down. Seems like his kind of flick. Note: First make-up credit for FX wiz Carl Fullerton (Friday the 13th parts 2 and 3)

Extremely adored among the true genre fanatics, but sadly still too obscure and underrated among wider audiences, "Rituals" is one of those rare films that hold the power to genuinely make your skill crawl. The special effects and make-up tricks may be kept to a minimum, but this low-budget production thrives on atmosphere and – especially – a downright sublime use of isolated outdoor filming locations. Like few other horror movies ever accomplished, "Rituals" makes terrific use of a menacing type of evil that is continuously omnipresent, yet remains unseen for the largest part of the film. The story is so much more involving and effective this way, because there are no images of over-the-top grotesque madman killers or ridiculously masked killers undermining the tension or needlessly affecting the credibility. Instead, we only witness a shadow moving rapidly through the trees and magnificently eerie POV-shots of someone slinking through the grass whilst breathing heavily. Another reason why this "slasher" stands a class above the rest – and particularly its 80's colleagues – is due to the choice of main characters. There are no drunken teenage-campers or obnoxious cheerleaders being slaughtered here, but the protagonists are a five-headed group of middle-aged and eloquent doctors who're out on a (supposedly) relaxing trip in the Canadian forests. After only one night, their boots are stolen and the group is forced to split up and continue barefooted. The group of inexperienced hikers rapidly decreases in numbers as the games of the unnoticeable maniac(s) become more and more sadistic. The comparisons between this "Rituals" and "Deliverance" aren't coincidental and certainly not exaggerated. It's at least as intense and haunting as John Boorman's classic film and the use of natural scenery is perhaps even better! Several sequences, including the infamous (among fans) decapitated-head-on-a-pole moment and the live burning – are extremely disturbing and unforgettable. The five main actors, among which Hal Holbrook, give away respectable performances and manage to make their characters come across like believable victims or a crazed evil. The denouements near the end of the script could have been a little better and slightly more elaborated, in my humble opinion, but still this is definitely a terrific film from start to finish. Highly recommended to watch and to own, especially since a brand new and fancy DVD version just got released in Europe. I think it a German distributor who brought it out, and the box alone is worth the purchase.