The Ranger (2018) Online

I added "The Ranger" straight to my watchlist, because I instantly liked the premise of a psychopathic National Park Ranger. Some of the best slashers of the 1980s took place in the backwoods, but the killers were always toothless rednecks or cannibalistic inbred families, so this could have been an interesting and original new angle, especially because the film (like so many others nowadays) supposedly also takes place in the 80s. But alas, "The Ranger" never fully lives up to its potential despite the cool titular killer and an adequate performance by Jeremy Holm, and that's principally because co-writer/director Jenn Wexler is seemingly more interested in a bunch of pathetic punkers and atrocious loud music than in atmosphere or scenery. Running from the police after an idiotic and unnecessary incident at a punk club, five vexatious teenagers seek shelter in a cabin in the middle of a National Park. One of them, the introvert Chelsea, spent much of her childhood vacations here with her uncle, and her own dark secrets from the past gradually come back to the surface. Meanwhile, the psychopathic Park Ranger ensures that Chelsea's disrespectful and arrogant friends receive the excruciatingly painful deaths they deserve. "The Ranger" is a textbook and thus unmemorable slasher that sadly doesn't make proper use of the locations, the villain, the numerous potential slash-methods or the 80s setting. The grim film poster remains by far the best asset of the entire production.

Got sucked into this one with all the over the top hype at the Fright Fest film festival, I guess putting a punk rock sound track into a films sound design means a film is "Unique" and "Something New" in the genre. It wasn't. The premise and plot are well worn - aka Cabin in the Woods - The Hitcher - Stalker. This film doesn't do anything that's already been done really well in the aforementioned films except for it's 80's theme. Throw in some bad, over used teenage angst and it's a thinly veiled episode of Buffy the vampire slayer in a park with a punk rock sound track to boot.

Frightfest opening night film, and very watchable as a VoD release when you get a chance.

Nothing new in the concept, slasher in the woods picking off a group of teens, but the execution (ha ha!) was good and there were a couple of aspects which made this a fun genre offering.

First, the punk setting and music. OK green room did it first, but this was much more fun and retro.

Second, the relationship between slasher and final girl offered an engaging spin on procedings.

Overall, if you are a genre fan then this should be on your watch list.

This is a tight little slasher movie that delivers more than its apparent budget warranted, thanks to smart choices by the writers and producers and the skill of director Jenn Wexler. It's nice to see a low budget horror film that's nicely lit and shot and acted, not another cheap-looking found footage cliche.

Chloe Levine, looking like a pink-haired teenage Scarlett Johansen, heads up an attractive and capable cast. Jeremy Holm is amazing as The Ranger, conveying with subtle shifting expressions the squirrely nervous energy of a loosely wired psychopath.

Based on the earlier reviews, it's clear some viewers found the punk characters unlikable. I found them colorful and their rude behavior appropriate to the story, establshing moral contrast to the lead female character.

The punk soundtrack features an excellent choice of songs, keeping the fast-moving energy flowing. Likewise, the punk costumes are beautifully detailed and provide a loud symbolic contrast to the idyllic deep woods setting.

It is realistically and somewhat gratuitously gory. The make-up efx are masterful and not for the squeamish. Definitely aimed at those who enjoy their horror edgy and unsanitized.

I look forward to more from this director and the producers.

Teen punks, on the run from the cops and hiding out in the woods, face off against the local authority-- an unhinged park ranger with an axe to grind. I've been wanting to see this movie for awhile -- how can you not want to see a film with this tagline? "Each year, millions visit our national parks. Not everyone gets to leave."

After the police raid their favorite club -- and one of them stabs a cop -- a gang of punks decide to hide out at Chelsea's (Chloe Levine, The Defenders) dead uncle's cabin. There's an initial confrontation The Ranger (Jeremy Holm, Mr. Robot, House of Cards) who is kind to our heroine (a flashback shows him cutting off the crusts of a sandwich for her and asking to be remembered as the cops arrive), yet in the face of everyone else.

This is Jenn Wexler's debut feature and it totally has the punk rock feel of Return of the Living Dead, which is a huge compliment. Plus, in this interview, music supervisor Middagh Goodwin talked about just how important it was to have a great soundtrack that would lead to viewers discovering some great punk bands.

That same park ranger who helped Chelsea years ago has now gone completely off the rails and is ready to stop these punks from vandalizing his park, much less blasting loud music and tossing their beer cans everywhere. It's not like he didn't warn them from the beginning.

Holm is just great in this, a true joy to watch. It's interesting to see a slasher villain who isn't tormented or disfigured or conflicted about what he does. He tells one of his victims that he's sorry that things had to be this way, but he has a job to do keeping these woods clean -- and then he heartily chuckles.

A lot of the story has to do with what exactly happened between Chelsea, her uncle and The Ranger. Did she shoot him? Was he killed by wolves? Can she even trust herself with all the junk in her system and the way her memories have been hidden?

I really dug this one. It's a film that throws it back to the slasher 80's but certainly could have fit within it. It's a bit smarter than your average slasher was, but has no shortage of gore along the way.

You can grab The Ranger at Redbox now, pre-order the DVD or blu ray at the official site or just wait until it shows up on Shudder later this year.

This movie may not appeal to the younger millennial crowd, but I don't think that's where the creators were aiming. Fans of late 80s and early 90s slasher films will enjoy this movie. Of you're going in expecting the pieced together horror films put out in factory fashion by production companies toda like Blumhouse, you will be disappointed. This is original slash/horror/gore.

As always, Jeremy Holm put forward a stunning performance. He continues to expand his range. He has proven he can step into any role and make it his own. From serious to psycho, Holm is believable in every role he's played. The crazy ranger is by far his best role yet.

Chloe Levine continues to grow. She can play innocent little kidnapped girl to the link haired punk in The Ranger, and make you believe that's who she really is. She's up and coming and I suspect she's going to morph into a very popular actor.

The only thing I would have liked the director to have changed was the maniacal laugh by the male punks in the beginning of the movie. It reminded me of the criminals in the first RoboCop movie with that crazy laugh that just sounds forced and faked.

If you're looking for a true late 80s or early 90s slasher flick then the ranger is the movie for you. Grab your favorite horror movie snuggling partner and sit back for an hour and 20 minutes of fun.

Hanging out with her punk friends, a troubled teen and her friends go on the run to a remote cabin in the woods following an accident, and while they begin trashing the area a psychotic forest ranger aware of their situation begins stalking them through the woods forcing them to get away.

For the most part, this one was quite a decent and enjoyable effort. Part of that fun is the fact that this one really goes out to make the central group a product of their environment. The opening scenes of them in their underground clubs, doing drugs and basically living by their own rules which sets them up as for what kind of group we're going to follow which might not be the warmest and most endearing but strikes this as appropriate for the type of feature told here. That, in turn, brings the film's fine slasher setpieces to make more of an impact. The initial sequence of the group partying and then witnessing the one getting shot which sends the whole group into panic and scattered throughout the woods hoping to get help starts this on a fine note, the trap with the one victim getting caught in the woods with the animals as well as the fine ambush in the convenience store which is a solid stalking scene overall. This nicely sets the stage for the solid finale where the chase becomes quite enjoyable as the drugged victim turns the tables on the killer and begins a somewhat enjoyable chase through the compound leading into the brutal confrontation that offers up a solid finale overall. Combined with the practical effects work for the kills, these here hold this up over it's few minor flaws. Among the few flaws to be had here is the rather troublesome antics of the group which makes it somewhat hard to side with them in their plight. Despite the fine work it does in setting up their plight and living conditions, that it paints them as self-centered, belligerent and basically living by their own rules as rude as possible. The disrespect for authority or other people's property thinking that they own everything around without any kind of consequences just makes it nearly impossible to side with them as they start to get attacked as despite her best efforts to bring a sense of grounded reality to everything. As well, the other big flaw to be had is the low number of kills here since the central group is so small it doesn't really offer much in that regard. This one keeps the body count to a minimum here so it's really hard to get all that excited at it that you would be for some other similar slashers, so although it has fun with the setup involved there's still some issues with it.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Violence, Graphic Language and continuous drug use.

A group of Jersey punk rockers and major coke heads get raided. They kill a cop and vamoose to a cabin located in Kanape Brook State Park, New York. This cabin belongs to the family of Chelsea (Chloe Levine) who we saw there earlier in an unexplained incident.

While there, they meet The Ranger (Jeremy Holm) who has his own issues and takes his job to the extreme. It isn't long before the disrespectful punks collide with the forest loving ranger with deadly results.

I liked the twist. I liked Chloe Levine. I liked the basic plot outline. The other characters didn't impress me and I wasn't impressed with the dialogue.

I had a problem with Amber (Amanda Grace Benitez) doing a bunch of coke and then passing out for 12 hours. I know a narcoleptic who did that, but most folks are up for a while. The film better if they had played "Punk Rock Girl" during the last kill scene...sort of like "The Banana Splits song" in "Kick-Butt"

Guide: F-word. Brief sex. Brief nudity?

I suspect this movie may not appeal to the younger millennial crowd, but I don't think that's where the creators were aiming. Fans of late 80s and early 90s slasher films will enjoy this movie. If you're going on expecting the pieced together horror films put out in factory fashion by production companies like Blumhouse, you will be disappointed. This is original slash/horror/gore. Similar to American Psycho, it has it's horror-humor too. In fact, the best line in this movie ("Oh, no...") is a mere two words long.

As always, Jeremy Holm put forward a stunning performance. He pulls off an absolutely brilliant "without-a-cause" psycho mentality. He continues to expand his range in every production he does. He has proven he can step into any role and make it his own. From federal agent to serious to psycho, Holm is believable in every role he's played, and The Ranger does not disappoint.

Chloe Levine continues to grow. She can play innocent little kidnapped girl to the pink haired punk in The Ranger, and make you believe that's who she really is. She's up and coming and I suspect she's going to morph into a very popular actor sooner than later. I expect we'll see her in more things, and hopefully her and Jeremy together in another role, as I think I saw an on-screen synergy there that worked. His misplaced love for her, her over-kill hate toward him. It was a great pairing.

The only thing I would have liked the director to have changed was the maniacal laugh by the male punks in the beginning of the movie. It reminded me of the criminals in the first RoboCop movie with that crazy laugh that just sounds forced and faked. It has no place in today's cinema.

If you're looking for a true late 80s or early 90s slasher flick then The Ranger is the movie for you. Grab your favorite horror movie snuggling partner and sit back for 87 minutes of fun.

Low budget. So-so acting. Thin story but watchable. Maybe it's just me but the wardrobe made it feel like an 80's flick. If you are looking for something amazing this probably won't satisfy but if you're just killing some time it's not bad.

Nice time killer. Has some pretty creative kills, the characters aren't too hard to like. The Ranger is a pretty fly killer, if I say so myself. The acting of both the punks and The Ranger is cheesy, but overall passable. It's Just an enjoyable, but forgettable time waster.

Being a fan of classic slashers such as A Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween, Friday the 13th and Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Ranger was definitely right up my alley. It takes a minute to build up, much like 80s classic The Burning, but once it does it delivers the goods, again much like the aforementioned, especially towards the end. The movie is FUN, plain and simple. The writing is very flawed at times but the actors do a great job delivering. The lead and the killer especially. The killer by the way is HILLARIOUS and menacing at the same time. Much akin to a certain Christmas sweater wearing baddie we know. You find times to root for him while also rooting for the victims, again especially with the lead. I left this movie feeling highly satisfied. Could the writing and dialogue have been better at times? Yes. And could the rest of the punk kids aside from the lead have been less than your basic vanilla punks who hate authority and go way out of there way to prove it? Yes, but all in all if your looking for a fun slasher that I dare say is way better than Friday the 13th, look this way.

A group of friends go hiking in a remote state park with a deranged Ranger tracking them. If that's not strong enough of a hook then the Punk Rock element is the shiny lure that pulls you into the deftly created world of nature vs nurture. Had a lot of fun watching this on the big screen.

I've seen this film on several lists of "must watch horror for 2018!!!" Really???

Maybe 2018 was just really short of horror films? I dunno.

Why is this not a good film? It just doesn't have anything good about it. You already know who the bad guy is coming into the film "The Ranger." It's no big surprise when he starts the punks. There was a clunky attempt to have a "she becomes just like the killer" at the end, but it just was weird and didn't hit the mark.

I also really never felt any empathy toward any of the characters other than the police officer who is killed in the beginning. The punks could have all died for all I cared because they had no redeeming qualities. Even the girl was complicit in murder and I didn't really care what happened to her.

The biggest selling point of this movie was that it was unique because it took an 80's slasher motif and applied the punk label to it. Whenever people try to pay homage to old 80s horror films, they usually fall flat. So does this one.

You can skip this one and not feel like you lost anything. In fact, if you do watch it, you'll lose about an hour and a half of your life.

6/10

I felt like I was watching some teen crime drama for the first half of the movie. The movie picked up a little once the "horror" finally started but it still felt very rushed.

The acting from the teens actually wasn't half bad, too bad they were so unlikable. The villain was creepy and really weird, I think movie would have benefited with him having more screen time.

I would watch a sequel if they decide to make one. Hopefully the main cast will be more likeable!

8/10, would watch liberal degenerates get slashed again.

Although just to be on the safe side, don't tell him he's funny (You think I'm funny? Funny how?)!!! All kidding aside, one of the best things in this movie is the Ranger himself. If you can't handle or dislike his one liners, there is literally almost nothing left for you to get behind. Yes a woman directed this and it's a by the numbers thing overall, without the "charme" of this special character/villain (or is he?) it would be worse.

Of course you may cut this some slack for that reason or you may generally like the teenage doing stupid things in the woods/forest thing. Not likeable characters at all, even the main character is only just slightly above the rest. But even she can't save the day (no pun intended). Nicely shot, nice effects, but nothing one really has to see

Title says it all, lawsuit is in place. Will provide updates.

This film is actually terrible!!

To quote a famous lady...

What a load of old SXXT (NaN Catherine Tate)