The slasher boom of the 1980s was a special time for horror. The genre eventually moved on to other styles, but through the decades, the pendulum has swung back at various points. From the brief Scream-induced period of the late ’90s and early 2000s to the current slasher renaissance, slashers always come back. Just like the killer. John Fucile’s Jacked takes the audience back to 1987 for a minimalist, vintage slasher that falls in line with titles like Alone in the Dark (1982) and Edge of the Axe (1988). The aesthetic is totally ’80s, with the signature automobile, telephone booth, clothes, and gas station. It’s like we’ve stepped back in time as though no, well, time has passed at all.
Jay (Tom Koch) and Lindsay (Marla Robison) drive out to the lake for a day trip. It’s serene and calm, perfect for catching up and sharing some intimate alone time. Jay has gone off to college in the city, and he suggests that Lindsay join him. But her father needs her, she says, and besides, she loves the country lifestyle. But this time together could give them a chance to connect on a deeper level. The sun beats heavily down on the dock, and the water is refreshing. While stopping at a nearby gas station, they miss the news blasting on the radio of a local serial killer. And they sure wish they hadn’t.
A creeper (Anthony Cipriani) stalks around the woods and comes across their car. Inside, the two lovers get it on, and they don’t initially realize they have a peeping tom. Once they do, the film leaps into a fight for survival. In classic ’80s fashion, Lindsay and Jay fail to fight back instinctively, making all the wrong choices. That’s the charm of Jacked, though. It feels like we’re watching a film at the drive-in back in the day. Fucile, who co-wrote the script with Simon Fraser, purposefully delights the audience with the tropes and cliches we’ve come to adore in a good slasher flick.
Jacked is not without the unexpected, however. When you think you know how it’ll all end, Fucile twists the knife and gives you one last shock. The cinematography, courtesy of DP Michael Salvino, crackles with a StageFright (1987) sheen that feels ripped off a VHS tape. And it’s never distracting. It’s authentic enough to give you the sensation of the very first time you watched a slasher on a boxed TV set in your parents’ basement.
When it comes to the current wave of slashers, Jacked emerges as one of the era’s best. For every post-Scream meta offering (e.g., Totally Killer, Sick, Ready or Not, There’s Someone Inside Your House, Freaky), we have those completely embracing standard slasher tradition, such as Terrifier, X, and Christmas Bloody Christmas. Now, you can add John Fucile’s Jacked as a glorious example of a classic slasher done right.
Jacked opens in the film opens in Toronto, Ithaca, and New Jersey theaters 7/3.
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