Riley (Hayden Newman) has long left his hometown for the big city when a friend of his, Reese (Adam Freeman), is brutally murdered, which urges Riley to return for the wake. The wake starts out as a nice reunion, with many of Riley's friends from back when showing up, including his ex Chris (Cody Alexander), who has since become a cop and still has feelings for Riley. However, soon old tensions boil up again, and the meeting doesn't end super-happily - and the next morning, one of Riley's friends, Jen (Johnna Vaughn), is found dead, killed, and a message written in her blood suggests Riley's return has to do with it. Because of that, Riley's considered one of the key witnesses and isn't allowed to leave town, and it also puts him on a guilt trip, so he and his friends try to figure out what's going on, something that's somewhat derailed when Riley and another old friend, Kyle (Stephen McGill) discover their feelings for one another while their friends Paige (Jessa Flux) and Gage - Reese's brother (and therefore also played by Adam Freeman) no less - are murdered by a masked killer. And the killer has also tied up Riley's mother (Cathy Podewell) and brother (Jeremiah Lee Steinert) and left them helpless on their house's porch, just to lure Riley into the open - it's a trap of course, but has Riley any other chance but to fall for it?

Now of course, at its heart, Reunion from Hell is a slasher with all the genre's key elements, from bloody killings to red herrings, in all the right places, but the film is really more than just that as it doesn't solely relie on suspense, scare tactics and violence but paints a rich backstory that's ultimately essential to the resolution of the film, while the characters are more than just cannon fodder but rouned out in an warts-and-all way, with a solid cast bringing them to life rather nicely. And all of this adds up to an interesting mystery as well as a fun genre ride.

review © by Mike Haberfelner

 

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