Slashers, Sex and A Film Party

Bruce Von Stiers

Every once in a while there is a film where it is a film within a film. In other words, the film is somehow about a film being made. Some of those are documentary films, such as behind the scenes exclusive footage. Other times it could be a comedy, an adventure film, or a drama. And a time or two, or more, it is a horror film about a film.

I just finished watching one of those horror films about a film. In this case, it is a horror film about a film's wrap party. The title of the film is That's A Wrap. One of the twists in the film is that the wrap party is for a film titled That's A Wrap. And it is also a horror film.

Director Mason Maestro has assembled his cast for a wrap party at his film studio. But only the cast. They weren't allowed to bring anyone with them. They also weren't allowed to bring their phones with them. And the film crew wasn't going to be there, as apparently, they were already on to the next film shoot. Nice and cozy, right? Maybe a bit too cozy. Because before the wrap party even starts, there is a murder.

The slasher killer in Mason's horror film was called Mistress. This person had a cloth mask and a blonde wig. It seems that someone is skulking around the film studio in the Mistress costume, stalking the various people at the wrap party.

Besides Mason at the party, there is Lily, his wife, who also acted in the film. Then there is Harper, Amber, Lana and Molly. The male actors at the party were Jamie, Carter, Richter, Stoney, and Troy. Ben Kaplan was Carter. He has had roles in many short films, including Yarders and My Best Friend. Aside from playing Richter, Robert L. Lucas was one of the Executive Producers for the film. Brandon Patricio was Troy. He's been in several short films. Steve J. Owens was Stoney. He has had recurring roles in several television shows. Jamie was played by Adam Bucci, who had a recurring role in Eastsiders, along with other television and film appearances.

Sarah French played Harper. Some of the films she's appeared, or co-starred in, are Death Count, Girl In The Picture, Dawn and Bridge of the Doomed. Gigi Gustin is Amber. She co-starred in Sally Floss: Digital Detective and Dawn. Sarah Polednak was Lana. The Amityville Moon and Starred Crossed: The Film are two of the films that she has appeared in. And Molly was played by Eve Marlowe.

Mason was played by Robert Donovan. Films that he's appeared in include It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Murder. And Lily was played by Monique Parent. She co-starred in Revenge Best Served Chilled, and has starred in several short films, including one I recently reviewed, Hairball.

Cerina Vincent was Alexis, who gets killed at the start of the film. Aside from co-starring in the series Stuck In The Middle, she has appeared in other series and starred in the film, The Work Wife.

Other actors in the film included Dave Sheridan as Wyatt, Jed Rowen as the photographer, Tom Savini as Alexis's agent and Frederick von Anhalt as the film's producer. There was also Joe Castro and Kwame Head.

This wrap party doesn't seem to be quite what it's supposed to be. Mason wants to celebrate his great masterpiece and everyone else thinks the party is lame. As the evening wears on, people start disappearing. After they leave the party area of the film studio, they are being stalked. But they don't know about it until it's too late.

While all this murder and mayhem is going on, there are conversations and potential hook-ups between cast members. The conversations deal with how hard it is to get ahead as an actor and what you must do to be successful. As for the hook-ups, a gay cast member makes a new friend, and two shy actors end up in a hook-up that proves deadly. And spewing wine onto a dress leads to a shower scene where Molly helps herself, to herself.

There is quite a bit of offbeat humor in the film. There are things said like “character development” when someone talks about their personal life. And a comment by Harper about how guys suck, is immediately followed up by a scene with two guys together in the throes of ecstasy.

There are only a few scenes of overt gore. These include the use of a sledge hammer and a curved carpet knife. A throat is opened up, spurting a flow of blood along a wall and there is a mushed skull. Oh, and someone hanging on a wall from being stapled to it.

There is an underlying point to the film. Although it is sprinkled throughout the film, the message isn't made clear until near the end of the film. That is, that strong women don't need a step up. They make it on their own.

Marcel Walz was the director for the film. Other horror films he's directed include Pretty Boy and Blind. The film was written by Joe Knetter and Robert L. Lucas, who I mentioned earlier. Knetter has written screenplays for several horror films and acting in quite a few as well. The cinematographer was Marcus Friedlander. He was the cinematographer for Bullet Train Down and Dawn among other films. Kai E. Bogatzki was the film's editor. He was the editor for both Pretty Boy and Blind.

The film was produced by Sarah French, Joe Knetter and Marcel Walz. There was a whole bunch of associate and executive producers for the film as well. Neo Noir, Wrap Movie LLC and Elite Film Group were the productions companies involved in making the film.

A promo tagline for the film is “Slash, Kill, Cut.. And That's A Wrap.” That pretty much sums up the plot. There is a slasher hell bent on killing people, Those people are stabbed, bludgeoned, stapled and skewered. The sex parts are fun, more comical than sensual. Except for the shower scene with Molly. That was something else. The acting was well done, especially the scenes with Lily and Harper interacting. The cinematography was good, as were the special effects.

For a fun, entertaining slasher film that has drama, comedy, gore and sex, you should check out That's A Wrap.

That's A Wrap is now available on Amazon and other VOD and streaming services.

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© 2023 Bruce E Von Stiers