No Smoke Without Fire: The Burning (Tony Maylam, 1981)

Let's be honest for a moment.

The Burning is not the goriest slasher ever made. Hell no. 

It's graphic, and bloody, yes. No question about it. But there's bloodier and gorier slashers around. The Burning mostly lives on because of two things:

1. The raft massacre.

2. It actually has some good characters.

We all know about the raft. It's cool - even if some (not all!) of Tom Savini's effects actually suck! Since when did a neck become twice as long when a hedge trimmer is inserted into it? Just asking. But still, an awesome scene and one of the most iconic ever in the history of horror films.

Oh, here it is, proof that the Kayan people is alive and well in the United States: 

"Hey Eddy, you forgot your neck rings! All twenty of them!"

For me The Burning is worth watching for the actors. Somewhere down the line, when EVERYONE made their own teenkill flick, the writers of The Burning decided to give their victims some personality. Hey, they did even introduce good characters that didn't die in the end. How odd. Everyone is very well defined, with strong characteristics and you get a chance to know them, just with a few words, the movement of the eyes, the interaction to other characters. It sure helps to have future character actors in the cast. A young Jason Alexander is there - with hair! Fisher Stevens shows up and is great - damn, he's small! Ned Eisenberg plays his classic asshole, Brian Backer - the Woody Allen-esque nerd - also excellent. And we're not gonna forget Holly Hunter in an early performance.

It's a very solid cast who actually have material to work with. Not saying the whole movie is brilliant - it's not changing the world, but it's takes the classic slasher rules, the stereotypes, and toss them around a little bit. This might be one of the few slashers with a final boy instead of a final girl, for example. The Burning also delivers a fine atmosphere, complete with spooky tales around an open fire, nervous heavy petting in the woods, nudity and realistic, or a least naturalistic, dialogue. 

One thing that always bothered me is the sequence when the hooker gets it in the stomach. Brutal and nice, but still... why? Why would an evil janitor lurk around in the city looking for whores? Wouldn't he go directly to the forest, find some teens and chop their heads off? My theory is that this sequence was written in afterwards, maybe even filmed after everything else. Because without it the movie takes its time delivering the kills. It has a slow build-up, focusing on character development, fun and games. I guess the audience the time expected more and more gore was shot to boost the sales. 

It was a smart road to go. Even if it strays away from the main theme of the film it also gives the story some more cynicism. A grittiness few other slashers have.

The Burning is hardly a perfect slasher. It's not the goriest. It's more famous because of nostalgia than having "it". Still a good little shocker, I'll admit that without shame!

Comments

[Megatron]

"Let's be honest for a moment.

The Burning is not the goriest slasher ever made. Hell no."

I haven´t seen this one yet.

"It's cool - even if some (not all!) of Tom Savini's effects actually suck! Since when did a neck become twice as long when a hedge trimmer is inserted into it? Just asking. But still, an awesome scene and one of the most iconic ever in the history of horror films."

Still I have to say, Savinis work is(when thinking about the budget,lack of preparations, etc)very impressive.

I´m willing to overlook some of the flaws, just look at color of the blood in Dawn of the Dead(1978).....Savini was unhappy but Romero was happy according to IMDB.

"A young Jason Alexander is there - with hair!"

Wait....WHAT!!???

"Fisher Stevens shows up and is great - damn, he's small!"

Iggy from Super Mario Bros.(1993)...?

I like him.

"And we're not gonna forget Holly Hunter in an early performance."

Supposed to be her debut feature according to IMDB.

"Why would an evil janitor lurk around in the city looking for whores? Wouldn't he go directly to the forest, find some teens and chop their heads off?"

Well....in hindsight it looks like a reference to serial killer Robert Hansen but wikipedia claims he wasn´t convicted until 1983.....so timing is off.

But as you said yourself.....filmed afterwards maybe.....producers wanted higher bodycount, nice looking(and I presume naked) hooker kill draws an audience...?

"The Burning is hardly a perfect slasher. It's not the goriest. It's more famous because of nostalgia than having "it". Still a good little shocker, I'll admit that without shame!"

Could be something for me....good review and thanks.

[stolf]

i agree with you that alot of this movie seams more "real" compared to other slashers. when i first saw it along time ago i thought it was really boring because of the slow pace. but i have to say now that i'm older and wiser(less goreaddicted) i like it more. and that raftscene... i still love it