Honeymoon Horror (1982) User Reviews

a must see for the stupidity towards the editing and script

[trashgang · 4/10 · 9 April 2012]

Made in the heydays of the slashers this is a slasher but one that people forgot and it disappeared in obscurity. It still is because if you want to see it you will have to search an old ex-rental NTSC VHS. Is it worth searching, oh yes it does but not for the horror.

The acting is sometimes as wooden as it can get. But that's normal because they were all first time actors, and even last time actors, not one made it further and only Kathy Johnson (tourist) came from a few other flicks but her career stopped with this flick. the worst acting came from Bill Pecchi as the sheriff but he went further as an technician like in Moonwalker (1988) as camera operator.

This flick is a perfect example how bad a flick can be due the low budget. The editing was too slow and it's clear that when they went running outside the cabin the sound was added afterwards. It isn't lipsync at all. But it can get worser. There were so many opportunities for the killer to attack but every time there was something in between so that the killer couldn't attack. If he attacks the editing was done so weird and bad that you misses some important moments of stabbing. Naturally they had to add some nudity which they did with a shower scene. Does I have to say that the killer slashes the nude girl, but just look once she's dead and is discovered by her lover. You can see her breath, her body is moving, go figure that one out!

The last scene were the killer enters the house is funny too. They tried to add some suspense but failed completely. Watch after a killing with an axe the killer watching the victim and her boyfriend just standing there waiting to be attacked. Once everything is solved we go further to a scene with the sheriff and his deputy on a motorboat, it adds nothing to the flick, only stupidity in the story and even the script, listen how he reacts to the CB.

Early eighties, the clothes do add something ridiculous to the viewer too. One guy is as gay as it can be, white socks, a chest with too much hair, and he's wearing a mustach and daisy dukes, but he's as straight as it can be. Men, this is a must see. There are a few bloody moments but from shot 5 you already know who the killer is.

One to add to your collections to classify under weird horrors. I had a few laughs due the cheesy lyrics and the weird editing while the killer goes berserk.

Gore 1/5 Nudity 0,5/5 Effects 1/5 Story 2/5 Comedy 0/5

These Newlyweds Get Any Easy, And Painful, Way Out Of Married Life Horror.

[P3n-E-W1s3 · 4/10 · 22 April 2022]

Greetings And Salutations, and welcome to my review of Honeymoon Horror; before launching into my critique, here's a breakdown of my ratings:

Story - 0.50 Direction - 1.00 Pace - 0.75 Acting - 1.00 Enjoyment - 1.00

TOTAL - 4.25 out of 10

Honeymoon Horror would have been a better movie had the writers gone for a more mysterious approach and thrown in a few red herrings. Sadly they elected for a step-by-step structure, which leaves no doubt about the killer's identity. When using this formulaic approach, you need to have a brilliant director; one who can keep the audience's eyes on the screen.

And Harry Preston, who also co-wrote this story, nearly pulls it off. There is plenty of angled camerawork. I particularly like the scene where the girl answers the door. She comes out of the bathroom, and the camera pans down her body to her hand swinging by her side. But no sooner has the camera framed her hand than she reaches for the door handle to answer the knocking. The camera keeps the framing as she grips and turns the handle. It's a nice shot and better than the standard point and shoot that most would do. It shows imagination and skill. He is also talented when it comes to shooting in the dark. For the most part, the shadows are heavy, but you can still see the action. Unfortunately, a few scenes are in complete darkness, which is annoying. But the worst thing is the steady, unhurried pace. You need to use everything to entertain the viewers if they know the killer's identity from the start because there won't be a surprise at the climax. Even though the camerawork was fine, it didn't work with the movie's single tempo. There needed to be excitement, thrills, tension, and suspense. All of that was lacking.

The cast is another plus for the picture. All the performers do well in their roles. However, they are held back by stereotypically written characters.

I had the feeling Honeymoon Horror was written and shot to tag onto the Slasher genre that was doing so well in the 1980s. As such, it just misses the mark, though it could have been better. It needed a more powerful story filled with interesting characters. As it stands, I wouldn't recommend rushing to watch Honeymoon Horror. But, should you stumble across it online, it will pass an hour and a half. It's not all bad.

Please feel free to visit my Killer Thriller Chiller list to see where I ranked Honeymoon Horror, or better yet, to find something more entertaining.

Take Care & Stay Well.

makes me want to get married...immediately.

[priest.21 · 5 December 1999]

let's get one thing straight...this is an obvious cliche in the genre of horror: people go on their honeymoon and the killings ensue. needless to say, i loved this film. i find nothing but entertainment value in this. the ridiculous plot and atrocious acting is what makes this both vomit inducing and wonderfully obnoxious. i recommend this this for the people out there who actually search out awful b-movie horrors and watch them in their entirety, loving every painful minute of it. if a movie is so terrible that it provokes anger and nausea within the viewer, it should be valued.

Read the Prenuptial Agreement Carefully!

[Zantara Xenophobe · 1/10 · 1 September 2000]

NOTE: This has spoilers in it. but you know what is coming five minutes into the film. Still, if you plan on seeing the movie, don't read the following review.

Let's see what we have here.... A secluded island with only a few people on it? Honeymoon cabins on the island? A deceitful murder years before? The cabins reopen years later? A bunch of "young" hormonally charged couples taking their vacation there? Could this be the premise of yet another bad slasher movie? You betcha!

Chances are, you've seen this all before, and much better, at that. Elaine and her husband (I think his name was Frank....we'll just call him that anyhow) own some cabins on an island. When he leaves for the mainland, she slips over to the cabin of their friend, Vic, for a little after-hours mischief. Ah, but one night, Elaine hurries over, and Frank returns for his cigarettes. He finds the adulterers...um...engaged and flips out. The result is Frank being knocked out after the cabin catches on fire. Vic and Elaine leave him to die, and the director leaves the scene to show us the black screen with the "Several Years Later," phrase on it. Yes, several years go by, and Elaine, now married to Vic, reopens the cabins to honeymooners. Three couples show up, all six displaying their bad acting talents. Among them is only one cliche, a muscular, stupid, balding guy named Dwayne. The other five people have no personalities whatsoever, which makes the picture worse than it should have been. Anyway, they apparently blew all their cash on the weddings and the receptions' alcohol, because I can't imagine why anyone would choose this ugly island for a honeymoon. I would have more fun dancing nude in the Antarctic Circle than being on that dull island! But the couples don't care, and proceed to do nothing but sleep together. Eventually (but not too soon, unfortunately), a crazed, burnt-up killer comes to bump people off. Everyone but the people on the screen knows it is Frank, which just goes to show how insultingly stupid these people really are.

There are way too many dumb points to this movie to mention, but I will provide a few reasons not to watch this. I would encourage (or perhaps I should discourage) you to watch the film before reading my negative points so you are unbiased and can compare your list of idiocy to mine. First off, why does Frank wait so long to attack? Elaine and Vic are the main targets, and they spent time on the island to fix up the cabins. Why not just whack them there and be done with it instead of waiting for the honeymooners? And why does Frank only seem interested in killing the women? That is stupid. Second, once they figure out someone is killing people, the so-called men wander out in the dark, looking for either the killer or missing people. Not only is that ridiculous of them to do, but you'd think that Frank would use this opportunity to isolate someone and snub them out. But no, Frank actually disappears during these searches, and thus there is a huge gap in the movie where absolutely nothing at all happens. Third, since they obviously never found Frank's body in the fire, why did Elaine, Vic, and everyone on the mainland think he died in it? It's not like his charred corpse got up, jumped in the water to cool off, and was lost in the undertow. This could be explained by the fourth point: dumb cops. Throughout the whole movie, we are constantly assaulted by pointless, annoying scenes featuring a dumb sheriff and his equally dumb deputy. They don't want to investigate the island because it is too much work, and we are force-fed overly long scenes of the sheriff complaining to his deputy and to himself over the island and "those crazy couples" that we really don't need. They serve no purpose in the film, and they are idiotic caricatures to boot. Every time they showed up, I kept expecting to hear the voice of Waylon Jennings pipe up and say, "Well, looks like the ol' Duke Boys are going to have an easy day today." Painful. And don't get me started on the poor acting, dim lighting, and the thin blood that comes out of people like spurts of water.

Originally, I thought about giving this film a 2, but the more I thought about it, the more I hated it. There is one good death, and it happens early on. After that, it get excruciating. The only reason you might want to see it is to write a comparison paper between it and the similar film, "The Burning," which was made around the same time as this was. At least with "The Burning," you could laugh at a very young Jason Alexander. With "Honeymoon Horror," you laugh at a muscular, stupid, balding guy named Dwayne. Zantara's score: 1 out of 10.

Fails on every level

[acidburn-10 · 2/10 · 21 February 2010]

The plot = 3 young newlywed couples jets off to a secluded lover's paradise, namely Honeymoon Island, unknown to them that the place has a murky past and before long the young couples find themselves in danger from something that lurks in the shadows.

When I saw "Honeymoon Horror" I thought what a complete waste of time, it failed to excite on almost every level. Obviously modelling itself on the ever popular Friday the 13th movies, but doesn't have half the charm of those fun movies. Now, with a title like that I certainly wasn't expecting anything astounding, but I was kind of hoping for a good healthy dollop of prime cheese- and being from 1981 the vintage was just right but it wasn't, the effects were cheap and nasty, the whole thing was just boring, (I mean it took way too long for something good to happen) and when it did happen, well it lacked any kind of impact, the cast were all just boring and seemed uninterested in they're roles.

All in all if you like camp/backwood slashers that are good and fun then stick with movies like (Friday the 13th, The Burning and Sleepaway Camp).

I hate this film, the sort of film that gives horror a bad name.

[poolandrews · 1/10 · 29 January 2005]

Elaine Barlow (Cheryl Black) runs a complex of cabins on a small island with her husband Frank and is having an affair with Vic Carlton (Bob Wagner). One night while Frank is supposed to be on the mainland he catches them together in one of the cabins. A fight breaks out, Frank is knocked unconscious and in an unfortunate accident involving an oil lamp the cabin is burned to the ground with Frank still inside. Fast forward an unknown amount of time, Vic and Elaine are now married and they have rebuilt the cabins and plan to reopen to the public. They advertise the island as 'Honeymoon Cove'. They are expecting their first guests, three recently married couples who are Kay (Margi Curry) and Jeff (Paul Inwanski), Sue (Kari Addington) and Gary (James Caskey) plus Linda (Leslie McKinley) and Dwayne (Philip Thompson). Before they arrive three of their friends Kelly (Jane Pardue), Robin and Jill (Jillian Raye) turn up and ask Elaine and Vic if they can decorate their cabins as a surprise. One of the girls find the maid Emily (Megan Ready) dead in a closet and she herself is killed, as are the rest of the trio. The couples arrive on 'Honeymoon Cove' and are given their cabins and settle down for the night. Things start to turn sour as they find the remains of their friends and realise they are being stalked by an unknown killer. Vic tries to contact the mainland and inform the Sheriff (Bill Pecchi) and his Deputy (Jerry Meagher) but finds the radio's antenna broken, the small and only pier on the island is set alight and is destroyed along with the only boat. The remaining survivors are trapped on the island until help arrives in the morning. But will they live that long? Who could the killer possibly be? Maybe the retarded caretaker who can't speak named 'Crazy Joe' (Micheal Wycoff)? Or is it someone less obvious? You can probably guess, that opening sequence isn't there for the hell of it you know. Written and directed by Harry Preston (although there is an 'Additional sequences by' credit) this slasher film has no redeeming qualities at all, quite simply it's awful in every single aspect of it's 90 minute running time. It feels much longer than 90 minutes. I just sat there hoping, in vain as it turned out, that something, anything exciting would happen but it never did. The film as a whole is really slow and boring. It takes great efforts to try and keep the killers identity secret but there are no suspects apart from the obvious and you can guess the killer within the first 5 minutes. The gore is none existent, a bit of blood and a fake axe stuck to the top of someones head is about it but there are no special effects to talk about. The acting is consistently terrible, and that fat 'comedy relief' Sheriff is the most annoying and useless character in a film that I've come across in a while. On a technical level the film is generally very poor and a bit of an eyesore to watch. There are much better slasher films out there, don't even consider sitting through this lame incredibly boring mess. A sorry excuse for a film that I thought was the pits and has nothing to recommend it. Everyone involved in making this crap should be embarrassed. For masochists and insomniacs only. Trust me, this is definitely one to avoid.

Here comes the burned up husband

[BandSAboutMovies · 2/10 · 31 October 2019]

I kind of love the copy that was used to sell this movie: "Imagine every newlywed's fantasy, a rustic secluded lover's paradise - Honeymoon Island. What starts as a weekend of love, turns into a nightmare of blood and terror for three young innocent couples. What lurks in the shadows of Honeymoon Lodge? Is it the caretaker, or perhaps something more fiendish and deadly? Honeymoon Island, where newlyweds joined in holy matrimony spend their wedding night screaming in terror!"

This movie was filmed at the Austin Patio Dude Ranch in Grapevine, Texas, which was built at the head of DFW Airport's main landing strip. In case you didn't realize, like the filmmakers, this is a busy airport, so all of the planes kept interrupting the movie.

Yet somehow, this was one of the very first direct to video films purchased by Sony Home Video and released to rental stores. Somehow, this movie isn't available on DVD, despite how successful it was for Sony. They spent $50,000 on the film and made around $22 million off of it. Then again, I got that statistic from IMDB and it could very well be bull.

Director Harry Preston only has one other credit to his name, a movie called Blood of the Wolf Girl that was never released and may have never ran in a theater.

I'm telling you all of these facts to cover up for this film, because it's one of the more pointless slashers you'll ever seen. Perhaps the only reason to watch it is for the fat sheriff, who is so ineffectual that he locks his keys in his car, meaning that he doesn't even catch the killer, who is a burned up ex-husband. Actually, he's a good reason to see this, too.

Actually, let me be honest again. As bad as this 1982 slasher is, it's better than any that came out this year. Talk about dwindling returns!

If you're on your honeymoon, stay away from "Lovers Island"

[TVM-Liveforever · 6/10 · 10 May 2015]

At a newly re-opened honeymoon lodge "Lovers Island" someone is stalking and killing the female newlyweds.

Decent if completely unmemorable slasher. The idea is fine, a killer lurking in the shadows killing the women on a remote island, but there are too many problems for it to become anything other than average. The acting is fairly stilted and even dramatically poor at times, the women are best but some of the males are just a bit too unbelievable. The film does create a bit of tension and does have a creepy atmosphere, however this is killed off along with some decent pacing, every time we see the stupid and totally unnecessary sheriff, its played for comic relief but doesn't work and would've been better not in the film. The mystery of the killer is not a mystery its obvious from the very first scene who our killer will be & is no shock when we see him. The low-budget is clear particularly in the ineffective gore sequences that don't really convince, although they are a little fun at times.

Unbelievably this was a Section 3 nasty here in the UK meaning it could be seized by the police, why?, that's anyone guess. The tag-line of- Why kill all the women- doesn't really mean a thing and it never becomes clear why, the best thing to do is don't think too much, just sit down for 90mins and enjoy it as much as you can.

A Few Interesting Bits

[Michael_Elliott · 6 October 2017]

Honeymoon Horror (1982)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

A husband goes out for cigarettes while on his honeymoon but when he returns home he finds the bride with another man. The bride busts her husband over the head with a bottle, a fire breaks out and he is burned to a crisp. Fast-forward a few years and the "bride" is still with the man she was cheating with and she's used the insurance money to build a honeymoon resort. Three love bird couples show up as well as a murderer.

HONEYMOON HORROR is an ultra low-budget slasher that borrows elements from THE BURNING and a few other films. The end result is pretty much what you'd expect. They obviously didn't have the money and in some cases didn't have the talent to pull off a very good picture but at the same time the film does have an interesting look and feel to it so fans of the genre who must see everything it has to offer will find a few nice things here.

The majority of the death scenes aren't the greatest that you'll ever see but again it's obvious they didn't have too much money to do them. MOre times than not we will see the weapon going towards the victim and then there's a cut to the aftermath. The body will be lying on the floor or wherever else with of course plenty of blood flowing. None of the scenes are terrific but at least they tried to give us some of the red stuff.

The performances are pretty much what you'd expect out of a film like this. They range from poor to "good-enough-for-the-genre" but to be fair, not too many of them went onto other projects. I will say that I really liked the look of the film as well as the setting. The plot is overly familiar and I'm sure most people will guess who the killer is. One wishes that there was some more action or a bit more energy but overall I've seen much worse than HONEYMOON HORROR.

Honeymoon cheese.

[HumanoidOfFlesh · 6/10 · 4 January 2010]

Frank discovers the affair between his wife Elaine and his best friend Vic.After a struggle,the two lovers leave an unconscious Frank in a burning cabin.Five years later three newlywed couples visit Honeymoon Island to celebrate their honeymoon.They don't know that there is a heavy-breathing killer on the island,who promptly starts to murder them...Campy and relatively bloodless slasher with some of the most inane dialogue ever put to film.There are some long and dull spots of unlikable characters talking.The acting is atrocious and the killings mostly happen off-screen.There is an arm amputation and axe in the head.The character of fat sheriff provides some laughs.If you like badly made 80's slasher movies you can't miss "Honeymoon Horror".A generous 6 out of 10.

Cheap slash flick w/bad FX!

[ehoshaw · 29 May 2000]

This movie looked good when I saw it at the video store, but it was so incredibly cheap and cheesy. A burned lunatic stalks some sort of Honeymoon Island place killing couples with machetes and axes. The gore scenes are so badly shot and the actors/actresses so bad that I couldn't help but laugh. This cheapie is also equipped with some giggly sorority sisters near the beginning of the film, who are hacked up one by one by the killer as disco music plays in the background. Horrible, just horrible!

One vacation that I would not like to go on.

[actionmoviestar · 7/10 · 28 March 2010]

Alright picture this. A nice secluded lodge, located out in the middle of nowhere. It's peaceful, not too shabby and has all the makings of the perfect getaway for newlyweds. It is quiet and picturesque in the day time but by night something fiendish lurks in the woods surrounding the lodge. What could it be? Only time will tell for the young couples that take a stay at this resort that has it's own secret "history." This is the basis for the 1982 horror film "Honeymoon Horror." Though it's a forgotten gem, it managed to find a video release in the early eighties. I guarantee if you were to mention this movie to anybody whether young or old, they would probably have no idea about what you're talking about. I guess that's the beauty of this picture.

Well let's get to the basic plot of the movie. Without ruining anything, this film tells the story of three anxious newlyweds that go to this nice resort for couples for a little relaxation and rest. Soon one by one, each couple is being killed off by an unknown killer that lurks somewhere in the dark. Could it be somebody from another person's past?? Only time will tell in this bed and breakfast of horrors.

Now don't get me wrong. This movie is not without it's flaws. The major flaw in this movie is the acting. My oh my, the acting was terrible in this. It is as if nobody really understand their characters motivations and the delivery of the lines were very poor. The script left a lot to be desired. Other flaws in this picture is the bad editing(the murder scenes look so poorly constructed together as if they didn't know which angle to keep in the film) and the direction, while not totally bad but it left a lot to be desired.

Now onto the positives about this movie. You may ask me why I rated this movie a 7. Let's be honest, this is not a brilliant movie. I would say despite all of it's flaws, the film really makes up for them on the count of the tone, mood and the way the night scenes were filmed, giving you a real sense that you were actually out in the forest unseen to the forces of nature. I guess I'm recommending this film on what it could have been, not the way it actually turned out.

However I will say that this film would have been much stronger, if it had been released in the late eighties under a different director. I also thought it was pretty effective that the killer was never revealed until the end. I guess what I'm saying is "Honeymoon Horror" is a movie that has his heart in it's right place but was just badly executed. However I still say you should check this one out.

Oh what horror!

[RareSlashersReviewed · 26 December 2001]

Oh what horror...Now don't be fooled into thinking I'm saying that this low brow FRIDAY THE 13TH wannabe is scary, no far from it. I'm talking about the hilariously atrocious acting that I had to sit through for an hour and twenty minutes to write this review. Watch out for Marlo the shopkeeper (Mary Lou Wittman), her excessive and somewhat unconvincing 'down south' accent is worth the rental price alone!

In the pre-credits we're shown a woman - Elaine (Cheryl Black) - getting on with her lover Vic (Bob Wagner). This fact is emphasised by the music that accompanies the scene which, sounds like it would feel more at home in a seventies porno movie. As the randy couple begin to dress down for the occasion, there's a frantic knock on the door. All of a sudden it flies open and in bursts a rather miserable looking chap. We then find out he's Elaine's husband, Frank. He punches Vic, grabs him around the throat and begins to strangle him. Quick thinking Elaine smashes him over the head with a glass bottle (presumably with some super human strength because it knocks him flying!) and helps Vic to his feet. In the commotion a paraffin lamp falls on the floor and before long the cabin's up in flames...with Frank left lying in it. Fast forward a year and Elaine is back on Lover's Island with her new husband...you've got it, Vic! They've just finished rebuilding the cabins after the tragic 'accident' that occurred 12 months earlier completely destroyed them. Their first customers - three flirtatious sorority sisters with their newly wed husbands in toe - arrive, and all seems to be going accordingly. But before long feelings of content switch to those of fear when a severely mutilated corpse is found on the beach. Stranded and without any form of contact with the outside world, the group must pit their wits against the Island's resident psychopath!

HONEYMOON HORROR is the only period slasher I can think of that manages to look at least five years older than it actually is. The whole flick (especially Bob Wagner's haircut) looks suspiciously seventies! Hmmm. All the genre cliches are present and correct, including the lunatic with heavy breath, the comical lard ass sheriff and of course the aforementioned sorority sisters who make perfect victim material for a deranged killer! Director Preston even pulls off one pretty suspenseful scene. Towards the end, Elaine hears someone trying to open her back door while she's in the kitchen of her cabin - unbeknown to her it's the killer. She turns to open it, leaving you thinking will she or wont she! I wont spoil that short moment of tension by telling you the outcome, simply because that's about as good as it gets, sadly the rest of the flick is pretty much of a disappointment. For a start there's the diabolical acting. It's almost comical how the cast calmly drink coffee whilst they're randomly being picked off and dispatched one by one by the maniacal assassin. Its no surprise, that absolutely NONE of these actors went on to do anything worth mentioning since 1981 when this little 'beauty' was unleashed on to the unsuspecting public! And then there's the incredibly inept sheriff and his goofy deputy. The director tries to add a touch of humour here and there by showing us these two buffoons pulling silly shenanigans whilst accompanying every scene with music that would make Benny Hill blush. But instead of generating any sort of amusement he merely creates two annoying characters that I'd rather not see on my TV screen. He also tries to be clever by not letting us see the killer right until the end and giving us a few would be suspects, so we can play whodunit. But even this doesn't work because (and i say this trying my best not to give too much away.)he shows us a whole heap of clues throughout that point straight at the real murderer's identity. So sadly that's another bad move on the director's part.

I'd like to say that HONEYMOON HORROR is a good reminder of a vintage year for slasher movies - 1981. But sadly it's probably one of the better examples of what killed of the genre. Avoid

* out of 4.

[brandonsites1981 · 12 September 2002]

Awful Friday the 13th. ripoff with an extremely low budget about several newlywed couples taking their honeymoon at a new island hotel designed with just newlywed couples in mind. However, they soon begin to fall prey to a killer lurking in the shadows and spying in the windows during love making sessions.

Avid horror fans might want to rent this because of a cool looking effect on the back of the tape box, but trust me this film is really awful. Just about everyone is miscast in this film and give nothing but wide eyed, jaw dropped heavily performances. The actors expressions remain almost the same no matter the situation. The director of this film, has given this film a murky, sleazy feel when it should at least be romantic at the beginning. The script copies Friday the 13th. all the way. This flick isn't even good for T & A since most of the cast members are in their mid 30's to 40's and are not attractive at all. Do yourself a favor and forget about this flick.

Rated R; Violence, Nudity, Sexual Situations, and Profanity.

Divorce this flick!

[Scream-7 · 31 January 1999]

I watched it yesterday and it was sooo stupid! This movie is really a poor man's Friday the 13th. I felt like I was watching a film through a projection cause of the quality of the film and the sound! The blood? One word: Ketchup! Don't waste your time with this flick (even the ending was dumb!), and watch Friday the 13th instead!