Not every film has to be high art. Sometimes, all you want is a bloody good time — in which case, pack your bags for a killer “Camping Trip”.
IMDb summarizes the plot of Camping Trip (2022, Fuica Brothers) thusly:
“In the summer of 2020, two couples decide to go on a COVID era camping trip after months of being in lockdown. The freedom of nature and the company of their best friends offers the group a rare sense of normality, but though secluded, they’re not alone…suddenly, the pandemic is the least of their worries.”
You could pretty much skip the whole first 30 minutes of this film unless you’re just dying to watch a group of friends (Leonard Fuica, Caitlyn Cameron, Alex Gravenstein, and Hannah Forest Briand) prepare for a camping trip then promptly have a bisexual menage a quatre after pitching their tents, which you might be if you swing that way or haven’t had it in months. Hey, whatever tips your canoe.
All you’ll be missing besides said foursome is a little bit of setup for the crime plot involving a duo of goons and a COVID-paranoid welcher (Ben Pelletier) who pisses off the goons by hiding the money he was supposed to give them (in exchange for some illegally obtained scientific materials) in the aforementioned foursome’s camping gear while they are off canoeing the morning after their sexcapades.
The goons violently kill the double-crosser (who, it turns out, was on the verge of discovering a “cure for COVID” supposedly worth billions, the formula for which he apparently has scrawled on some looseleaf paper in his pocket) and go off looking for their cash.
Meanwhile, the foursome returns and finds the body, the formula, and the money.
And before you can say, “polyamorous spelliamus”, the crooks show up at the campsite and lean heavy on the group, pretending they’re looking for their “friend” while calculating their next move.
The tension is palpable.
This is mostly because the main goon, played by imposing Michael D’Amico (Zombie Nightmare), is intimidating as hell, even if his partner (Jonathan Vanderzon) presents as a clueless redneck.
Unfortunately for the friends, the two goons aren’t about to leave without their money or without sampling the womenfolk.
Even more unfortunate is that we have to see how that plays out by suffering through a literal six-minute slow-motion sequence.
The payoff is some very nice gore, some just comeuppance, and, well, shit…a lot of melodrama. But hey, the finale lines up quite nicely and keeps you wondering what’s going to happen.
Sadly, it drags on too long, and for some stupid reason, they decide to use CGI blood spatter, which — and please, please listen if you are a filmmaker — NEVER looks good.
By the end of it all, you’re just praying for Jason Voorhees to show up and off these characters for fucking in the woods.
But at least it goes out on a bloody note, and really, what more can you expect from a horror thriller with campers?
The score is quite well-wrought and does help keep things moving forward, even when the editing does not.
The writing is above par, and the acting is outstanding, though none of the characters, whether protagonist or antagonist (really, they’re all antagonists) is particularly likable.
But I didn’t like any of the characters in Friday the 13th Part VII, and I still enjoy the shit out of that movie.
So, if you’re like me and love ya some crushed skulls, multiple stab wounds, bullets to the chest, axes to the extremities, and a good old-fashioned mangling by machete, you may enjoy CAMPING TRIP for what it is as much as I did.
It’s a bloody good time, during which you can just check your brain at the door and watch the bodies hit the floor!
Overall Rating (Out of 5 Butterflies): 3
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