September Slashers: Just Before Dawn

Hello Fiends! I can’t believe it has been an entire year since we first got acquainted with 30 September Slashers. This year, we are going to do things a little bit differently as we have slimmed down a bit and are instead counting down 10 slashers as we close out the month. Well, enough of the chit chat and let’s get down to business. Tonight’s slasher cinema gem was directed by Jeff Lieberman, the same guy who directed the killer worm film Squirm (If I were Shriek Show, I wouldn’t be bragging about that fact). So crack open a beer and get ready for the first of ten September Slashers as we take a look at Just Before Dawn.

Set in the Oregon wilderness, five innocent youths armed with only their camper and a partying attitude, are heading up a mountain to have some carefree fun. One of our unsuspecting victims has inherited some land out in the boonies and by God, he means to claim it. (P.S. When you see how remote this place is, you’ll wonder how in the hell anybody would ever own this piece of property). There is just one problem with their little adventure, everyone and their dog is telling these clowns to head back. A horse loving forest ranger (played by Naked Gun and countless westerns alum George Kennedy), a group of pissed off locals with a shotgun, and a drunk deer hunter who says people are dying up on the mountain, all tell them to go back. Does this stop em? I think you can answer this one. Sure enough, the campers begin to meet their demise one by one at the hands of a redneck killer who looks like a cross between Leatherface and a guy from Deliverance. I think you can pretty much fill in the blanks from here.

First off, I first saw Just Before Dawn when I purchased the DVD almost ten years ago and this was the first time I had watched it since then. I didn’t like it back then because I felt that it was too slow. With the exception of a quick kill in the beginning, this film really doesn’t get going until about the 40 minute mark. However, I am glad I revisited this often overlooked Slasher. Originally, I thought that the slow paced nature was one of the faults of this film; however, I now think that it works to the films advantage. The wilderness shots, along with the pacing, create a sense of isolation and this makes the audience feel uneasy. The gore isn’t over the top but I don’t think that this is necessarily a bad thing in this case. One of my favorite scenes in the film features one of the lovely campers going for a swim. This aforementioned scene produced one of the creepiest moments of any slasher I have seen in a long time and it was all done in a very creative way that did not rely on gore or cheap scare gags(i.e. a stupid cat jumping out). About half way through the flick there is a big reveal about the killer that is truly shocking and no one could possibly see it coming.

Overall, I would recommend Just Before Dawn to lovers of eighties horror and slasher cinema. If you are in the mood for a slow burning slasher that focuses on atmosphere, then this film is for you. However, if you are getting a group of friends together for a fun filled, fast moving, slasher fest with tons of tits and gore, you may want to pass this one on by. It is currently for sale on Amazon for around 4 dollars used and I would recommend picking it up. Not a bad start to our ten slasher countdown. Tomorrow we will take a stroll into familiar territory as we look at one of the overlooked films of an extremely popular slasher franchise with…….Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning.