I can honestly say that I haven't seen a good low LOW budget horror film yet this year.  Quite often they are just a mess and the production team tends to aim for a type of silliness that, most of the time, is more unsettling than at all funny.  I'm talking about YOU Andre the Butcher!  HOW DARE YOU!  Anyway, I'm happy to say that Freak Out is above and beyond any low budget horror/comedy that I have yet to see this year....or possibly even this decade.

I could easily say that Freak Out is a complete success based primarily on the outstanding characters created by Christian James and Dan Palmer.  I think all American horror fans can associate with the films main character, Merv.  He's a walking horror film library.  His bedroom walls are covered in movie posters and one of his favorite activities is to out school "amateur" horror movie goers at his local video store.  So what happens when he and his friend Onkey decide to make friends with an escaped mental patient?  Lots!...but the main plot point here is that they try to train him to be a real serial killer.  One that can move within the shadows of other famous horror movie villains such as the ones that are plastered to the walls of Merv’s bedroom.

Horror comedies these days tend to be a little off the wall in terms of cheap humor and zany scene setups.  Freak Out is really no different.  True, sometimes the humor doesn't work all the time and certain scenes tend to end a little on the ambiguous side, but the style for the most part works extremely well here.  James Heathcote and Dan Palmer (also of course co-writer) do a wonderful job with both of their roles in this film.  Their crazy friendship certainly adds to the comedy aspects of the film until the only real premise of horror that lies within it’s entire running time comes from the act of training a rather silly mental patient how to become a deranged killer in a plastic hockey mask.  Well, that and some hysterical amateur gore sequences toward the last ten minutes.

I recommend this film to fans of all types of horror.  I can see a little bit of myself in Heathcote’s character and I know that you too will smile when you see how much of a devoted fan to horror he is.  From the script, you’ll also hear a lot of random horror movie facts and tidbits that will also make you feel right at home with this film.  The characters are strong, the script is solid, the jokes are hits or miss, but there are plenty of moments for everyone to enjoy.  If you aren’t a big fan of horror, you might find a little less in the film than others who do enjoy them.  Now, if you have always liked a good slasher film, like your's truly, but now, you want something to put a real smile on your face…check out this little gem.  You won’t be disappointed!