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Cast: Paul Bailey, Rich Adams, Sylvia Beeken, Delvin Brooks, David Buckler
Deranged cowboy drifter Roy Thompson arrives in a small town and immediately begins savagely murdering the locals. The carnage runs at full throttle as the town's citizens try to figure out how to defend themselves against the folksy killer. The posse that gathers to take Roy out comprises a colorful crowd, including a couple of bitter ex-cops, a high school jock, a stripper and even the group's own serial killer.
The slasher/serial killer genre has been done countless times in the past and I am sure will be done countless more as well. Director, Jason Baustin was nice enough to send me a copy of his film, Cowboy Killer. I was curious about it and took a look at the trailer and it left me with mixed feelings on this flick but like they say "never judge a book by its cover" so I was waiting to receive my copy before I passed final judgement. The story is simple, Roy is a modern day cowboy or at least he dresses like one and carries a pair of six-shooters. He is on a cross country trip that will lead to a rampage of murder and violence. The film is a mix of humor and horror, mixing both of these genres together in one flick is very tricky and if not done right it can result in a real disaster. Thankfully here the mix is perfect, there is plenty of violence and just the right amount of humor to give the film a campy and fun feel without making it a complete joke. There are some great characters in this film, the cables guys to me were hilarious and provided much of the needed humor in order to make this work. Paul Bailey stars as Roy and he is perfect at playing his role without being too over the top, he does sinister and funny very well and he steals every scene he is in. The rest of the cast did a good job considering this is a low-budget Independent film, no one here is going to win any awards but they all played their roles very well. Some of the production values suffered a little bit due to the budget but hell I think that gave the film even more charm. The killings were creative and the humor was very witty and well-written. This is Jason Baustin's first time behind the camera and I thought he did a fantastic job keeping the film moving at a fast and entertaining pace. Cowboy Killer reminds me of those "B" classic slasher films from the 70's and it is just as much fun as well. A fun, violent thrill ride that takes entertainment to a new level. If your a fan of horror I highly suggest giving this a shot, I am sure if you go into this with an open mind and take the film for what it is you are going to find a little gem, one I never expected but was pleasantly surprised by. Released by Rivercoast Films. **** Out Of *****