Listonixio Fresh and Exciting

Glucedee It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

Aubrey Hackett While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

Marva It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

moonmonday Billed as 'the first gay slasher film', Hellbent basically takes every genre trait it can and tries to combine them into a singular movie. It works in some ways, mainly as a pastiche with a twist since it's not the usual straight sex-crazed, drugged-out teens that have been served up as fodder for decades.Unfortunately, it doesn't work in a number of other ways, and that's a real shame. I think the biggest way that it fails is that no-one really brings up the concern of a hate crime after the double-murder at the beginning. In reality, that would be all over the place, people would have heard about it, and it's very unlikely things would go on exactly as planned with a brutal double-murder the night before Halloween, especially when it was not even two blocks away from the centre of West Hollywood. Sorry, but I don't buy it.It seemed like the makers wanted to avoid stereotypes, but in so doing also managed to avoid realistic-feeling characters. Instead, the characters came off as pretty heavily stereotypical...just in different ways than is usually seen in gay-oriented entertainment, and at the same time included almost no recognisable figures that one would really encounter in a place of such a concentration of the gay community. Basically, like they were trying way too hard to 'normalise' gay men and gay culture, to the point where it just looks like obnoxious 20somethings at funky clubs on Halloween. The characters are all fairly ridiculously fit, though, which isn't really clever enough to be ironic.It didn't deal well with the mysterious killer, who is never explained and has no real gravitas. It's just some bodybuilder in a mask, that's it. Nothing more is ever really explored. For that matter, the other characters were largely not that great, aside from the genuinely likable Chaz, which may have been due to the actor's own charisma. The main protagonist was awful, as was his unbelievable and obnoxious female friend; they also didn't really explain what he was doing working for the police since it was stated numerous times he failed his exam.This said, though, the big flub of Hellbent is that it kills off the much more likable and interesting characters, does it far too soon in the story, and doesn't even do it well. The more annoying characters stick around, the story goes nowhere, and it ends about as you'd expect. The story doesn't make sense -- after encountering a weird, potentially dangerous guy at the scene of a murder less than 24 hours previous, they say nothing to anyone and aren't that surprised when he follows them?! The whole hate crime element is not really touched upon, and it's conspicuous by its absence, but it's not something that the viewer can really avoid thinking about.Maybe that's the reason why Hellbent is one of a tiny few in the 'gay slasher' genre...because it's not really fun, and usually slasher films are kind of supposed to be. It tries too hard, and it doesn't try hard enough. It's basically just really depressing, and by the end of it all you aren't even fulfilled by a satisfying resolution. If it had been just another 'straight teens go partying on Halloween and there's a killer' film, not a single person would have cared. It doesn't have a sense of humour really, so you can't even say it's a black comedy. It's just sad.

slayrrr666 "Hellbent" is a more than entertaining slasher with a new twist to the story.**SPOILERS**Out on Halloween night, Eddie Fitzgerald, (Dylan Fergus) warns his friends Toby Weatherton, (Matt Phillips) Joey, (Hank Harris) and Chaz, (Andrew Levitas) that a serial killer may be on the loose that is targeting homosexual men. Preparing for a night out at a party, they don't think much of the story as it will interfere with their partying at the big club later that night. Meeting up with Jake, (Bryan Kirkwood) at the club, they all indulge in their darkest fantasies and have a little fun in the process, which is welcomed by all in attendance. While they're out enjoying themselves, the killer starts to target them as well, putting them all at a dangerous position when they try to get away from his reign of terror.The Good News: This one here is actually not that bad when it really came down to it. The movie has all the boys, booze and bacchanalia one could want, instead of the usual T&A of the standard slasher flicks. The difference in this case is that the horny couple are both male. In a pitch-perfect homage to old school horror, the film opens on a hot and bothered stereotypical horny couple making out in their car in the park at night in a secluded spot. As the young men grapple and pant, we're shown a shadowy figure skulking ever closer. The figure emerges in the moonlight, showing us a glint of scythe, a Mephisto-style devil mask before he strikes a fatal, tryst-ending blow, decapitating them both and takes the heads as trophies. These types of scenes play off the style and tone really well, making it appear to fit in with the genre while also keeping up its difference point all the better. When it decides to go for the horror aspects, though, the results are just spectacular. In one standout moment, a couple of club-goers find a headless body slumped in a toilet cubicle, covered in blood, initially thinking it's an elaborate Halloween joke until the body twitches which sends them all into hysterics is quite inventive. Another fantastic scene has the killer off a victim on a crowded dance floor, stabbing them in the gut with a sickle before decapitating him as the strobe-lights work overtime overhead. That works extremely well in the context of a slasher flick set around the theatrics and artifice of a Halloween night carnival. It also helps that the scene comes off like a real set-piece rather than just shoe-horned in, and is pulled off spectacularly. Easily the best, though, is when one character is outlandishly saved by his glass eye stopping the killer's sickle piercing his brain. The sight of the blade touching the eye with the metallic clink plainly heard, the suspense set up to ensure a great site, and tense moment leading up to it are played off perfectly and make it a superb scene in every sense. In fact, the slashing and stalking are purely stand-out in every way, and are there to ensure that it gets enough points about it to make for an entertaining film. The unnamed and ostensibly motiveless murderer is appropriately dark, shadowy, merciless and perfunctory in his killing. There's also some memorable kills, mainly through the use of decapitations resulting in many nice splatter moments. Mixed together with a stupendous pace and some wonderful humor, this one manages to be really entertaining.The Bad News: This one here has a couple of flaws, though they aren't big and important. One is that the kills aren't all that graphic even though they are decapitations. It really should've used another style of death to help make an even bigger impression, but none of the kills are really as bloody as they could've been. The other problem with this is that there's nothing groundbreaking in the depiction of gay men behind closed doors or even out reveling in the wildness that is the West Hollywood Halloween Festival. That might have made this film a bit more interesting, instead of having it be just a different take on the tired old slasher clichés. Sure, we see some of the guys kissing but that's as far as anything sexual goes. If the film really wanted truly different, we would have seen more of what one sees in the typical slasher movie, the T&A and simulated sex, only in this film, it would have been male genitalia and ass with the simulated sex. This has plenty of opportunities to do so, and while those may not be for some out there based on it's very nature of it's themes, but these parts here are what really hold this one down.The Final Verdict: An absolutely enjoyable homosexual slasher, with enough about it to be enjoyed by those who enjoy that style of film while also making it easy for heterosexual ones to get something out of it as well. Recommended to both styles, while those who can't get past the themes and issues should heed caution.Rated R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language and strong sexual themes

little_rhody This is a low budget, slasher film set in West Hollywood on Halloween. Being low budget some of the acting isn't world class, but that really doesn't hurt the film because of the campy, sexy, spooky nature of the film.There are some wonderful moments in the film, like when Eddie first sees Jake, and has trouble hitting on him because he's nervous, or when Joey gets the phone number of the guy he's interested in. On the flip side there's the scene where Eddie is handcuffed to the bed while the killer is lurking about, undetected, in his apartment. That was more suspenseful and more thrilling than "1408" and "Vacancy" combined.In the end, like any slasher film, the killer survives, and I hope there's a sequel set in New York on Halloween. How cool would that be?

gradyharp HELLBENT is a tough movie to classify. Yes, it is about a serial killer on one Halloween night in West Hollywood, but it also seems to be a light-hearted takeoff on all the silly teenage massacre horror films. Is it parody or was it meant to be a thriller? No matter, because what we get is an entertaining, well-paced, witty-scripted, full of tension foray through the clubs and alleyways of the very colorful West Hollywood Halloween atmosphere.Don't search for story motivation: there doesn't seem to be one. A devil-garbed body builder beheads boys, leaving the corpses sans heads to the horror of the community just as Halloween festivities are beginning. Our main characters are four friends who are out for a good time, the leader of whom is costumed as a cop and in reality is a wannabe policeman who failed the course due the loss of an eye. His fellow friends are zippy, tight, and fun loving and along the way many of them fall victim to the 'devil's scythe' (and yes, that is shown in grisly detail!). There is a lot of chase action in dark rooms and darker woods and alleys and the fear quotient is pretty high. The problem is the ending, which doesn't answer any plot motivational questions and unfortunately leaves the door open for future follow-up adventures (or is this merely part of the parody of the multitudinous versions of Freddy, I Know What You Did Last Summer, etc teenie flicks?).The cast is attractive and seems to be enjoying themselves as actors. The lighting and costuming and musical scoring are on a par with the best production values of films of this genre. In the end it is fun to see a thriller played solely in the gay community without preachy comparisons or strife with the straight folk. It is entertaining for everyone.