I Didn't Come Here To Die is probably one of the best efforts from a low budget horror film I've seen in awhile. The gore effects were great, especially the chainsaw scene, all of it looked raw and painful. The film blends comedy and horror very effectively, that it reminded me when I first saw The Evil Dead, but blended with Final Destination, just not as great as those. They definitely did wonders with their very limited budget, for instance the tent scene with the spooky shadows that kind of reminded me of Freddy Kruger. The film also reminded me of the superior low budget horror film Dead Wood, but I think this one will have a better chance to become a cult classic, maybe.
The acting was surprisingly decent and the characters were oddballs, but very entertaining to watch and at times hysterical. You felt bad for them, as horrible luck comes to them in every corner, but this is completely a tongue in cheek type of film, that makes it a messed up riot. The characters might be the typical ones found in horror films but their demise isn't and it was refreshing.
Director and writer, Bradley Scott Sullivan seems to know and love horror films and this film is evidence. It's like a loving ode to the little horror films that could, like for instance The Evil Dead. His filming style was retro brilliance and I dug it a lot! I will for sure keep an eye out for him and I can imagine great things if he has a much larger budget.
Overall, there was some hype surrounding this film when it first hit, but I can't unfortunately say that this film deserved it. I can say that I enjoyed it for what it accomplished on such a small budget and its balanced blend of horror and comedy. I think it could of been a tad better and delivered crazier mayhem, but it got most of the job done in a surprisingly, effectively well matter, especially for a first time director. I liked it, but I wish that I could say that I loved it; I was just sort of disappointed with the film as a whole. Definitely worth a watch for horror fanatics though! 6.9 out of 10
