Horror icon Gunnar "Leatherface" Hansen is on hand in this horror anthology, as he essays the role of Ralph, a rough-hewn stranger who materializes out of the night before three young male campers. He proceeds to spin a quartet of horror tales, and for the most part, they're actually pretty entertaining; this little film does live up to the word "horror". It gets pretty damn disgusting at certain points, so it will appeal to gore fanatics, and the stories are entertaining and succinctly told. This little film was the product of the imagination of William Cooke and Paul Talbot (if the second name rings a bell, it's because he's a Charles Bronson expert who's written books and recorded commentaries for a number of Bronson vehicles).
"The Hook" is pretty standard stuff about a couple who run afoul of the title maniac. It's decent, but is basically just a warm-up for the tales to follow.
"Overtoke" is good, gruesome fun. Two stoners come into contact with a supplier who gives them some VERY strange stuff indeed ... stuff that has dire consequences when ingested.
"The Fright Before Xmas" has the appeal of a "just desserts" sort of yarn, as a resentful, greedy son experiences his own consequences of a murderous act. As you can expect, the ending is very satisfying.
Finally, "Skull and Crossbones" is a solid, atmospheric tale of a pirate shipwrecked on an island. He's determined to unearth whatever treasure may be there, but is warned that he won't be successful if he tries to get off the island. This segment is pretty talky for a while, but it has a VERY fun payoff.
Overall, Cooke and Talbot do a good job with this little film, well worth seeing if slowly paced at times. Hansen makes the journey(s) worth taking; one might think that as the token "name" actor, that his cost made up a substantial part of the budget, but he proved to be quite reasonable, to the filmmakers' delight.
Horror anthology aficionados should dig this.
Seven out of 10.
