This Bowie Lau horror flick is a loose remake of Dennis Yu's "The Beasts" with large helpings of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and "Friday the 13th" thrown into the brew. It's actually an inept pile of dung for most of its running time. The script is all over the place. The acting is terrible. The hand-held stuff is ridiculously over-the-top. A bunch of idiot tourists arrive on an island that is the home of a family of freaks. The father wears a cloth mask and brandishes a chainsaw. His son is a deformed retard with a deviant's interest in women. As you would expect, father and son stalk the tourists and kill some. As you would also expect, the females get sexually molested as well. There are one or two disturbing, uncomfortable scenes, but they are canceled out by the film's brainless, haphazard direction. The second and best half of the movie, which mostly takes place at night, looks like it was shot and directed by a different crew of people; the lighting is much more solid and the direction has greater focus. Still, this is pretty poor film-making. Even for a slasher film, it's relatively light on the gore. And don't look too closely at the chainsaw while it is being revved -- the blades aren't moving.
8 Reviews
Inept pile of dung with a couple of disturbing scenes
fertilecelluloid15 July 2008
Warning: Spoilers
It's missing the money shots...
alienlegend21 February 2023
Warning: Spoilers
They needed better kills and a talented FX artist. Anthony Wong's death for example should have been super gory and gruesome but instead you get blood dripping from one of the spikes. That's it. So you have a very limp slasher without any good payoffs and the chainsaw immediately brings to mind The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, which only makes this look more inept. There is a little bit of nudity but for a CATIII especially (was it even a CATIII?), this is very tame. You do get a decapitation but it's just done in shadows and most of the runtime the film is pretty dull. The characters are nothing to write home about. Unless you're into golden showers from guys (sorry not my cup of tea), there isn't anything shocking in this... ok maybe the Anthony-Wong-assisted rape but it seems nothing really happened there (she was still wearing all her clothes). The killer and his son aren't special either. I do like the war-games-nut getting his butt handed to him when things turn real but the film needed to be a lot more extreme or have a much better, more unique script and storytelling. I'd skip it.
Almost worth a look.
sdrshadow3 April 2002
I was very excited to see the Oriental version of our '80s slasher movies. I won't say I was disappointed but there were some small irritating points. The first was the part where Soldier was fighting with the killer. I have no idea what the song playing was saying, but it sounded like something Madonna would record an English version of. It seemed very out of place. The second point was the incredibly strange surprise ending. I won't give it away here, but if you think about it-that just came from left field. Summing it up, there was hardly any suspense, not too much blood, one small sex scene, and some slightly disturbing scenes(all involving the young retarded son). Not much to recommend but kinda worth it if you miss the slasher films of the '80s. Just don't expect too much and you might have some fun. One last irritating point(a small one). I don't know who they get to do the subtitles on these movies but they are very distracting due to the strange broken english style. Are there not any Americans living there that could be hired to do a better job or is it not worth it. I would be willing to buy more if the subs were done a little better.
So bad it's... bad
Iguanatic27 June 2003
For those of you who buy this movie expecting an Eastern "Friday The 13th" - as I did - you'll be sorely disappointed. For this isn't the Hong Kong answer to Sean Cunningham's 1980 slasher classic, but instead to a nod to the extremely brutal 1974 film "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre", telling the story of five teenage friends holidaying on an idyllic island who fall afoul of a mentally retarded youngster and his chainsaw-happy father.
"1999 The Deadly Camp" is one of the worst movies I've ever seen - in ANY language. It's grim, it's low budget, the acting's despicable, the dialogue's corny beyond belief; I could go on and on. At first I wondered whether I was missing something in the subtitle translation but, although the 'burned-in' subs on the Widesight DVD release are very hard to read at times, it is the movie itself that deserves the most criticism.
The plot is completely infantile, the direction is lame beyond words and I honestly believe a pre-teen could do a better job given the plot premise. And it's so GRIM - slasher movies (at least in America and I'm sure in the Far East, too) are designed to be fun. Despite the ratings often given, I'm sure most films in this genre are made with the 13-21 age in mind and that's why we're often given a bit of a break from the harsh brutality of the killings with some humour or other light relief. No such luck here, though, as the unrelenting father kills anyone who doesn't have time for his mentally retarded - and sickeningly perverted - young son.
I'm a big fan of Asian cinema and this is certainly just a minor blot on their record for me but "1999 The Deadly Camp" is a movie which made me feel quite sick. Truly abysmal and not recommended in the slightest. * / *****
"1999 The Deadly Camp" is one of the worst movies I've ever seen - in ANY language. It's grim, it's low budget, the acting's despicable, the dialogue's corny beyond belief; I could go on and on. At first I wondered whether I was missing something in the subtitle translation but, although the 'burned-in' subs on the Widesight DVD release are very hard to read at times, it is the movie itself that deserves the most criticism.
The plot is completely infantile, the direction is lame beyond words and I honestly believe a pre-teen could do a better job given the plot premise. And it's so GRIM - slasher movies (at least in America and I'm sure in the Far East, too) are designed to be fun. Despite the ratings often given, I'm sure most films in this genre are made with the 13-21 age in mind and that's why we're often given a bit of a break from the harsh brutality of the killings with some humour or other light relief. No such luck here, though, as the unrelenting father kills anyone who doesn't have time for his mentally retarded - and sickeningly perverted - young son.
I'm a big fan of Asian cinema and this is certainly just a minor blot on their record for me but "1999 The Deadly Camp" is a movie which made me feel quite sick. Truly abysmal and not recommended in the slightest. * / *****
Sometimes funny, always bad HK slasher
dworldeater19 May 2023
The Deadly Camp is a slasher/horror type of film that nods to Friday The 13 and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Keep in mind, this is ultra low budget and really, really bad. The script doesn't have much to offer with telling a story or characters. Basically there is a family of freaks that kills people that they see as trespassing on their island. Being a Hong Kong film really didn't make it more interesting other than casting Anthony Wong as someone who has screen presence and is interesting. For those that understand the HK sense of humor, there is some hilarious stuff here with the mostly unsympathetic idiots that get killed off. I found myself dozing off at many points in the film. The Deadly Camp was recently released with two other Catagory III movies. This was not a Catagory III film and is relatively mild when concerned with blood and gore. It also is the weakest movie of the three, so you might want to skip it.
Chinese version of an '80s slasher
Leofwine_draca8 June 2016
Warning: Spoilers
When people mention Eastern horror you either think of the slick, disturbing "new wave" of films on the market (THE EYE or AUDITION to name but two) or look back to the distinctly-Eastern-flavoured delights of snake curses, snake women, outlandish black magic, flying body parts and evil wizards. So, when I sat down to watch THE DEADLY CAMP, I was expecting this film to fall into one of the two camps. Instead, what I found was a cheesy, no-budget slasher yarn distinctly influenced by all the American horror films of the last thirty years!
The movie kicks off with a camera prowling at ground level around a forest, so THE EVIL DEAD influence is clear. Next, we're on to a bandaged baddie wielding a chainsaw and chasing women through the woods – Friday THE 13TH, that'll be. Of course, the killer is horrific-looking, all blood and bandages and weeping sores – a bit like Freddy in A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET. He likes to take his victims home as playthings for his retarded son in some truly disturbing scenes reminiscent of THE Texas CHAIN SAW MASSACRE. In the end, the survivors set a trap in the trees for him – PREDATOR anyone? And there we have it.
The film isn't as gory as you'd imagine – splashing blood and the distant shot of a severed body is the most we get, which will be a disappointment to those who enjoy modern gorefests like HOSTEL and THE HILLS HAVE EYES. Instead, it makes up for a lack for gore with some repulsive moments done in the worst taste possible: the scene in which the retarded boy is urinated on comes to mind. Really, I don't enjoy watching stuff like this, it's not what I would call entertainment. To make matters worse, the English subtitles are poor, sometimes impossible to read and not making much sense when you CAN read them, either. The cast of young teenage actors is clichéd and rather uninteresting, although they somehow drafted in a big name, Anthony Wong, to draw the crowds; I guess he took up most of the movie's budget.
The only good things I can say about this film are that it's over quickly; with super-fast pacing, the running time flies past, and there are a couple of scenes involving spiked jungle traps which I always enjoy. Otherwise this is a strictly clichéd slasher, the type of thing you'd expect from '80s America, not turn-of-the-century China.
The movie kicks off with a camera prowling at ground level around a forest, so THE EVIL DEAD influence is clear. Next, we're on to a bandaged baddie wielding a chainsaw and chasing women through the woods – Friday THE 13TH, that'll be. Of course, the killer is horrific-looking, all blood and bandages and weeping sores – a bit like Freddy in A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET. He likes to take his victims home as playthings for his retarded son in some truly disturbing scenes reminiscent of THE Texas CHAIN SAW MASSACRE. In the end, the survivors set a trap in the trees for him – PREDATOR anyone? And there we have it.
The film isn't as gory as you'd imagine – splashing blood and the distant shot of a severed body is the most we get, which will be a disappointment to those who enjoy modern gorefests like HOSTEL and THE HILLS HAVE EYES. Instead, it makes up for a lack for gore with some repulsive moments done in the worst taste possible: the scene in which the retarded boy is urinated on comes to mind. Really, I don't enjoy watching stuff like this, it's not what I would call entertainment. To make matters worse, the English subtitles are poor, sometimes impossible to read and not making much sense when you CAN read them, either. The cast of young teenage actors is clichéd and rather uninteresting, although they somehow drafted in a big name, Anthony Wong, to draw the crowds; I guess he took up most of the movie's budget.
The only good things I can say about this film are that it's over quickly; with super-fast pacing, the running time flies past, and there are a couple of scenes involving spiked jungle traps which I always enjoy. Otherwise this is a strictly clichéd slasher, the type of thing you'd expect from '80s America, not turn-of-the-century China.
Hong Kong slasher
BandSAboutMovies14 October 2020
Warning: Spoilers
Nearly two decades after the slasher boom, Hong Kong decided to get in on the action with Bowie Lau's The Deadly Camp. Unlike the spate of new wave slashers and their need to decry the past, this one simply shows that everyone involved is a fan of 1981-ish slashers. I can relate.
Look, any movie that starts with a young couple getting killed in the woods with a chainsaw is going to make me happy. I'm a very simple man with very simple tastes. Give me a maniac with his face all wrapped up with bandages, ship in some annoying kids and let God sort them out.
If you hoped that The Final Terror had a sequel, but moved the action to somewhere in the Far East, I have great news for you. This is also a film where a character actually says, "It's true, we met a lunatic when we pissed yesterday!", a line that make me piss my pants, too. Who says we can't communicate with the rest of the world and all reach a mutual understanding?
This has a rich body count of fifteen people, which is pretty high for a slasher. Supposedly, it's a remake of the 1980 Hong Kong film San Gou (The Beasts). There is some modern tech here, but it does absolutely nothing against a family of killers who have no issue with killing every single person they come close to.
It doesn't break any new ground, but if you're missing the days when a new slasher came out nearly every weekend, it's there and waiting to be watched.
Look, any movie that starts with a young couple getting killed in the woods with a chainsaw is going to make me happy. I'm a very simple man with very simple tastes. Give me a maniac with his face all wrapped up with bandages, ship in some annoying kids and let God sort them out.
If you hoped that The Final Terror had a sequel, but moved the action to somewhere in the Far East, I have great news for you. This is also a film where a character actually says, "It's true, we met a lunatic when we pissed yesterday!", a line that make me piss my pants, too. Who says we can't communicate with the rest of the world and all reach a mutual understanding?
This has a rich body count of fifteen people, which is pretty high for a slasher. Supposedly, it's a remake of the 1980 Hong Kong film San Gou (The Beasts). There is some modern tech here, but it does absolutely nothing against a family of killers who have no issue with killing every single person they come close to.
It doesn't break any new ground, but if you're missing the days when a new slasher came out nearly every weekend, it's there and waiting to be watched.
Friday the 13th... Hong Kong style!
plaznihqyllnikaaf16 August 2001
Entertaining little slasher flick! It's best discribed as a mix of Friday the 13th, Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Violent Shit 2. As in most slasher movies, the plot is basically non-existant. A group of friends goes to a remote island to party for a few days, and then get slaughtered one by one by a psycho killer and son. Thats it. The dialogue is very cheesy and the acting not that good, but it's quit entertaining anyway. Not that gory though. If you like slasher flicks, then this little Hong Kong movie is worth a look...
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