The Toolbox Murders is misleading, and to the degree that it is almost impossible to talk about why without going into spoilers. This begins as a poorly-made slasher movie, then switches gears midway through. If you were to go by the poster, the tag line or the synopsis, you'd think this was just a sleazy slasher movie, and you'd be right up until the 40 minute mark, at which point I thought it was very strange to make it painfully clear who the killer was. Red herring? Nope, we're shown this because the rest of the movie is going to be about a psycho holding a girl captive. Okay, be a slasher movie or be a kidnapping story, you don't have the requisite storytelling skills to make both. The only highlight of this disaster is Pamelyn Ferdin, who plays our lead character, Laurie. She deserved to be in a better movie. The movie, overall, is bad, but the first act is an exercise in how to not make a film. The editing looks like it was done with a lawn mower. The acting... the acting may be the worst I have ever seen. I am specifically talking about our first-act victims/witnesses, and it's not a matter of they were bad actors, they didn't act. I've never been cornered by a murderer, nor have I ever found the body of a murder victim, but I think I would - I don't know - scream, fight, do literally anything - not here. Hell, I've had stronger reactions after finding a spider in my house than these people do when encountering death. I get the feeling that they had to keep the noise down - like all the way down - since they were filming at a hotel during the night. I'm a huge fan of slasher movies, so I know the drill - no pun intended. We first meet Debbie, and I was like "yes, this must be our lead girl, I am totally okay with seeing her - naked - throughout the entire film... oh wait, she's dead. Okay, maybe Dee Ann, she's hot... and she's dead too. How do you get away with calling this The Toolbox Murders? It would be like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre starting the first act with chainsaw death, then morphing into Misery for the remainder - only bad, really really bad. I would have been fine with The Toolbox Murders being a slasher movie or being a maniac pulling an Annie Wilkes; but not both, it's too hard of a direction change. I think there is a reason I never hear this talked about in the same breath as Halloween or Black Christmas - being from the same era. Even is you're a diehard slasher fan, just don't bother with this.
Sure it's pretty sleazy and very obviously a cheap knockoff of Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but I think it's still a really effective slasher. Especially by the epilogue. It's got some great characters, with real humanity and it's rather grim.
Review by BronsonBlockedParent2022-06-10T06:50:12Z
The Toolbox Murders is misleading, and to the degree that it is almost impossible to talk about why without going into spoilers.
This begins as a poorly-made slasher movie, then switches gears midway through. If you were to go by the poster, the tag line or the synopsis, you'd think this was just a sleazy slasher movie, and you'd be right up until the 40 minute mark, at which point I thought it was very strange to make it painfully clear who the killer was. Red herring? Nope, we're shown this because the rest of the movie is going to be about a psycho holding a girl captive. Okay, be a slasher movie or be a kidnapping story, you don't have the requisite storytelling skills to make both.
The only highlight of this disaster is Pamelyn Ferdin, who plays our lead character, Laurie. She deserved to be in a better movie.
The movie, overall, is bad, but the first act is an exercise in how to not make a film. The editing looks like it was done with a lawn mower. The acting... the acting may be the worst I have ever seen. I am specifically talking about our first-act victims/witnesses, and it's not a matter of they were bad actors, they didn't act. I've never been cornered by a murderer, nor have I ever found the body of a murder victim, but I think I would - I don't know - scream, fight, do literally anything - not here. Hell, I've had stronger reactions after finding a spider in my house than these people do when encountering death. I get the feeling that they had to keep the noise down - like all the way down - since they were filming at a hotel during the night.
I'm a huge fan of slasher movies, so I know the drill - no pun intended. We first meet Debbie, and I was like "yes, this must be our lead girl, I am totally okay with seeing her - naked - throughout the entire film... oh wait, she's dead. Okay, maybe Dee Ann, she's hot... and she's dead too.
How do you get away with calling this The Toolbox Murders? It would be like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre starting the first act with chainsaw death, then morphing into Misery for the remainder - only bad, really really bad. I would have been fine with The Toolbox Murders being a slasher movie or being a maniac pulling an Annie Wilkes; but not both, it's too hard of a direction change.
I think there is a reason I never hear this talked about in the same breath as Halloween or Black Christmas - being from the same era.
Even is you're a diehard slasher fan, just don't bother with this.