"Humongous" is a decent enough slasher film with some good points.
**SPOILERS**
Preparing for a sailing trip, Sandy Ralston, (Janet Julian) Eric Simmons, (David Wallace) his brother Nick, (John Wildman) and sister Carla, (Janit Baldwin) and Nick's girlfriend Donna Blake, (Joy Bushel) get together and sail off. Coming upon a strange, fog-covered island, they find stranded sea-goer Bert Defoe, (Layne Coleman) in the sea and take him in for shelter. Becoming stranded on the island after a freak accident, he soon relates a story about the owner of the island and her huge guard dogs that keep visitors off her land, which they take with a grain of salt. Venturing out to explore the island, they soon start to mysteriously disappear as does everything else on the island. Finding a deserted house, the group finds out the horrifying truth about the other occupant of the island, and are soon thrust into a deadly fight to survive the beastly killer's relentless onslaught against them.
The Good News: This wasn't all that bad at all and there's some really good stuff in here. The fact that the killer in here is imposing physically makes it a more than appropriate in making the killer someone to fear. That makes all the difference, and the deformity on display makes this one a real keeper. The fact that there's no real clear shot of it until the end makes it all the better, as a quick glimpse of an arm here or part of the ribs there and a picture starts to form but can't be completed until the very end. That's a great way to build up suspense to it's final revelation and this does it quite nicely. There's even some suspense to be had from it's fine stalking scenes, with the one in the jungle while gathering food to be it's absolute best. It's beautifully done, takes it's time and really gets all that it can out of them and just makes the whole thing really spectacular. The chase through the house is another really well-done stalking scene, and there's some really good ones inside the middle portion to really keep interest in the film. That there's a lot of big action scenes in here as well is another plus, with the absolutely spectacular ending in the house the best example. This is a real action-packed scene, including the addition of a ton of fire used and some great battling with the killer. The scene is a lot of fun and really ends it on a perfect note. The kills aren't that bad, as there's a face crushed with a rock, a monstrous bare-hug that breaks the back, a vicious decapitation that scores the film's best shock gag upon it's surprising re-appearance, an impaling with a wooden stick and having one set on fire with the most absolutely brutal-looking variation ever as the flames just simply engulf them and it just looks so dangerous. This works on several pretty nice variations overall.
The Bad News: This one here does have it's own problems. One of the biggest is that this feels way too convenient for there to be any real slashing. The fact that they get stuck there is a little unbelievable, and the way it goes down has a lot to do with it. There's no reason for it to happen, it really sticks out as it's the way they start dying off and it doesn't really register because it doesn't make any sense why other than to get them in harm's way when there's plenty of other options available to get it done. Another really head-scratching idea is the way that the survivor gets out of the wreckage. This is way too much to believe, and the nonsensical story behind it doesn't do it any better. There's also a few scenes in here that don't really work either, but these are all subject to individuals and not at all that much of a detriment as a whole. The rape scene or the aftermath of animal violence scenes in particular are sterling examples of those that don't hurt the film outright but can be seen as a detriment based on personal preference. Otherwise, the fact that most of it doesn't make much sense is the worst flaw.
The Final Verdict: There's some good points and bad ones in here, giving this a real mixed-bag appeal. There's some good stuff in here for slasher fans and cheese-fanatics, giving them the recommendation for this one, but the bad points will lower this one for those who aren't as forgiving.
Rated R: Graphic Violence, Language, Nudity and Rape
**SPOILERS**
Preparing for a sailing trip, Sandy Ralston, (Janet Julian) Eric Simmons, (David Wallace) his brother Nick, (John Wildman) and sister Carla, (Janit Baldwin) and Nick's girlfriend Donna Blake, (Joy Bushel) get together and sail off. Coming upon a strange, fog-covered island, they find stranded sea-goer Bert Defoe, (Layne Coleman) in the sea and take him in for shelter. Becoming stranded on the island after a freak accident, he soon relates a story about the owner of the island and her huge guard dogs that keep visitors off her land, which they take with a grain of salt. Venturing out to explore the island, they soon start to mysteriously disappear as does everything else on the island. Finding a deserted house, the group finds out the horrifying truth about the other occupant of the island, and are soon thrust into a deadly fight to survive the beastly killer's relentless onslaught against them.
The Good News: This wasn't all that bad at all and there's some really good stuff in here. The fact that the killer in here is imposing physically makes it a more than appropriate in making the killer someone to fear. That makes all the difference, and the deformity on display makes this one a real keeper. The fact that there's no real clear shot of it until the end makes it all the better, as a quick glimpse of an arm here or part of the ribs there and a picture starts to form but can't be completed until the very end. That's a great way to build up suspense to it's final revelation and this does it quite nicely. There's even some suspense to be had from it's fine stalking scenes, with the one in the jungle while gathering food to be it's absolute best. It's beautifully done, takes it's time and really gets all that it can out of them and just makes the whole thing really spectacular. The chase through the house is another really well-done stalking scene, and there's some really good ones inside the middle portion to really keep interest in the film. That there's a lot of big action scenes in here as well is another plus, with the absolutely spectacular ending in the house the best example. This is a real action-packed scene, including the addition of a ton of fire used and some great battling with the killer. The scene is a lot of fun and really ends it on a perfect note. The kills aren't that bad, as there's a face crushed with a rock, a monstrous bare-hug that breaks the back, a vicious decapitation that scores the film's best shock gag upon it's surprising re-appearance, an impaling with a wooden stick and having one set on fire with the most absolutely brutal-looking variation ever as the flames just simply engulf them and it just looks so dangerous. This works on several pretty nice variations overall.
The Bad News: This one here does have it's own problems. One of the biggest is that this feels way too convenient for there to be any real slashing. The fact that they get stuck there is a little unbelievable, and the way it goes down has a lot to do with it. There's no reason for it to happen, it really sticks out as it's the way they start dying off and it doesn't really register because it doesn't make any sense why other than to get them in harm's way when there's plenty of other options available to get it done. Another really head-scratching idea is the way that the survivor gets out of the wreckage. This is way too much to believe, and the nonsensical story behind it doesn't do it any better. There's also a few scenes in here that don't really work either, but these are all subject to individuals and not at all that much of a detriment as a whole. The rape scene or the aftermath of animal violence scenes in particular are sterling examples of those that don't hurt the film outright but can be seen as a detriment based on personal preference. Otherwise, the fact that most of it doesn't make much sense is the worst flaw.
The Final Verdict: There's some good points and bad ones in here, giving this a real mixed-bag appeal. There's some good stuff in here for slasher fans and cheese-fanatics, giving them the recommendation for this one, but the bad points will lower this one for those who aren't as forgiving.
Rated R: Graphic Violence, Language, Nudity and Rape