After the tragic consequences of a Black Friday riot, a masked killer dressed as a pilgrim begins targetting those who were present that night in Plymouth, Massachusetts, the origin of the holiday. As the body count increases, it becomes apparent that the killer has an even more sinister plan in mind. Can the local Sheriff Eric Newlon put a stop to the killer's bloody rampage?
The latest offering from Eli Roth, which like Machete and Hobo with a Shotgun had its origins as one of several fake trailers created by different directors for Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez's Grindhouse movie double bill. Thanksgiving treads familiar ground, with what was seen before with the Scream franchise. However, the problem with those movies is that besides the fact that they should have ended long ago. It spawned a series of pale of imitations, with this being the latest of its ilk. The problem first and foremost is that there aren't any really engaging or memorable who you really care about, with the only familiar faces among the cast being Patrick Dempsy and Gina Gershon, the latter of whose presence is all but too short-lived.
Roth seems to attempt to compensate for this, as is his want with his penchant for excessive gore and grisliness. And when it's nasty it's downright nasty. Chief of which is when one of the killer's hapless victims is literally cooked alive in an oven only to be served up as Thanksgiving dinner. The director has certainly never been known for his restraint when it comes to bloodletting as he previously proved with his first two Hostel movies and The Green Inferno. However, when it comes to building tension and a sense of foreboding he's most definitely no Wes Craven. It's all very much by the numbers and shallow as it is empty-headed, lacking any of the self-referential wit and self-knowingness that the likes of I Know What You Did Last Summer, Cherry Falls, and Valentine failed to capture.
There is some innovation behind it though, with the first kill offering a spark of originality, while the performances are solid enough there's no character to care enough to truly root for. And with so much effort in concentrating on satiating bloodhounds' taste for all that's grisly Roth and Screenwriter Jeff Rendell have failed to concentrate on constructing a credible plot. It has more holes than a block of cheese.
Apparently, this managed to scrape in enough money at the box office that Roth already has plans for a sequel. This will therefore probably lead to the start of another Horror franchise that like Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street will outstay its welcome. And that's the last thing that we need.
The latest offering from Eli Roth, which like Machete and Hobo with a Shotgun had its origins as one of several fake trailers created by different directors for Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez's Grindhouse movie double bill. Thanksgiving treads familiar ground, with what was seen before with the Scream franchise. However, the problem with those movies is that besides the fact that they should have ended long ago. It spawned a series of pale of imitations, with this being the latest of its ilk. The problem first and foremost is that there aren't any really engaging or memorable who you really care about, with the only familiar faces among the cast being Patrick Dempsy and Gina Gershon, the latter of whose presence is all but too short-lived.
Roth seems to attempt to compensate for this, as is his want with his penchant for excessive gore and grisliness. And when it's nasty it's downright nasty. Chief of which is when one of the killer's hapless victims is literally cooked alive in an oven only to be served up as Thanksgiving dinner. The director has certainly never been known for his restraint when it comes to bloodletting as he previously proved with his first two Hostel movies and The Green Inferno. However, when it comes to building tension and a sense of foreboding he's most definitely no Wes Craven. It's all very much by the numbers and shallow as it is empty-headed, lacking any of the self-referential wit and self-knowingness that the likes of I Know What You Did Last Summer, Cherry Falls, and Valentine failed to capture.
There is some innovation behind it though, with the first kill offering a spark of originality, while the performances are solid enough there's no character to care enough to truly root for. And with so much effort in concentrating on satiating bloodhounds' taste for all that's grisly Roth and Screenwriter Jeff Rendell have failed to concentrate on constructing a credible plot. It has more holes than a block of cheese.
Apparently, this managed to scrape in enough money at the box office that Roth already has plans for a sequel. This will therefore probably lead to the start of another Horror franchise that like Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street will outstay its welcome. And that's the last thing that we need.
