In a Violent Nature

Time and again, filmmakers and studios have reached for and reutilized successful concepts and frameworks to play it safe in a volatile industry. The brave bunch who operate beyond the white picket fence of safety are often praised but rarely ever thrive on a larger scale. The horror genre has seen its fair share of redundancy and experimentation, its notoriously straightforward accessibility a launchpad for the nostalgics and creatives alike. Enter Chris Nash’s In a Violent Nature, a Canadian slasher film that bridges familiarity and innovation; a movie that forces a perspective that audiences probably always imagined and never had the chance to experience—until now.

Courtesy of IFC Films

Set in the backdrop of the 1980s, In a Violent Nature pays homage to the proverbial Golden Age of provocative, occasionally goofy, and gory campground slashers. The story follows a pair of vacationing friends who stumble upon an abandoned fire tower; they steal an old locket hanging from a pole, unknowingly triggering a series of terrifying events. The locket was the only thing keeping the monstrous, vengeful revenant known as Johnny at bay. Now awakened, Johnny is determined to retrieve the object and brutally eliminate anyone standing in his way.

Yes, the plot is far from original, and horror veterans will notice an immediate resemblance to Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives and its opening scene, in which Tommy Jarvis accidentally resurrects the hockey-masked serial killer. Hell, Johnny even looks like the undead Jason. The plot and character similarities do not end there, but viewers will immediately notice a difference from the first few frames. Nash and cinematographer Pierce Derks open on the natural elements of the Ontario wilderness, the locket, and the old fire tower in a series of carefully planned, meditative shots. The camera lingers on moments like these until Johnny emerges and follows him for the remainder of the film like a protagonist in a third-person action/adventure video game.

Courtesy of IFC Films

Because we never see the men who take Johnny’s locket until later, it becomes clear that this is Johnny’s tale, his outlook on the miscreants who took something belonging to him, and the punishment they deserve because of it. Campground slashers of the ’80s often gave us the antagonist’s backstory to create intrigue and a connection to the film’s protagonists. And while they also tried to justify the deaths of the promiscuous, sinful victims, the viewer would always maintain a connection to the innocent final boy or girl. In Nash’s inventive slasher, the “good guys” don’t matter as much, which is a fascinating shift in an otherwise familiar and measured moral relationship between the audience and the hero.

On one hand, the emotional connection with the story and its characters gets virtually severed, but instead, In a Violent Nature allows us to appreciate the artistry and rage in Johnny’s revenge-fueled warpath. As we follow him, learning about his origin from the group of friends and little sentimental moments through Johnny’s eyes, we slowly understand his sorrow and unbridled fury. In between the slumberous—albeit gorgeous and compelling—long takes are truly gut-wrenching and impressive kill scenes that will make any slasher fan whoop delightfully or recoil with disgust. The practical effects are a heartwarming throwback to the ’80s, which tenured special effects artist Nash and his crew are keenly familiar with.

Courtesy of IFC Films

So, the plot is standard, the human characters are uninteresting and not meant to be cheered for, and the hypnotic cinematography and lack of score make for a deliberately slowed-down cinematic experience; however, there is beauty to appreciate in this different take on convention. Ry Barrett is genuinely menacing as Johnny, and the drawn-out takes allow us to relish the world Nash concocts in all its ambient, bloody, wooded glory. In a Violent Nature even subverts some expectations in its latter half in surprising and tense fashions, which is the cherry on top of a uniquely sensory slasher film experiment that will likely be divisive but hopefully lauded for its exciting approach to a beloved subgenre of horror.

In a Violent Nature plays in theaters on May 31st.

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