(thanks, frightism!) 

As horror movies from the era go, Mother’s Day hits all of the right notes genre fans should appreciate, which means this oldie’s NOT for the squeamish or anyone who hates a bit of nastiness in their fear flicks. Riffing off on better movies like Deliverance and gore classics such as I Spit On Your Grave and Last House On The Left, co-writer/director Charlie Kaufman (no, not THAT one, this one’s Troma Picture’s Lloyd Kaufman’s brother) cooked up a mean little revenge movie with a few twists and turns. It’s at turns scary, sick, and funny, and as noted, NOT for everyone, so beware if that goofy poster piques your curiosity and you decide to go in cold.

While more of a cult film than actual “classic,” this one’s got some pretty sharp teeth, bites really hard and deep. When three gals set out on their yearly camping trip, they run afoul of a pair of crazed brothers and their even more unhinged mother who’s not even close to a sympathetic character. The old bat has her boys kidnap and put the three girls through hell in some disgusting torture and abuse scenes that are still effective and hard to watch today. One girl dies from her injuries, but the other two survive… only to return loaded for bear in order exact revenge on their former tormentors…

You’d figure after the sheer hell these young ladies went through, they’d roll back there with every policeman in the state ahead of them, but nope. That happens in real life and this film’s absolutely not anything resembling a representation of reality. This one’s a case of justifiable turntable homicide, Horrorwood style and some of the things that happen to the trio of backwoods brutes may bring up a few chuckles (provided you’re in the proper mood). Well, this IS a Troma production, so you weren’t expecting milk, cookies and a nice tuck-in after this bedtime story, correct? I recall the film being unrated or at least that poster above not having a rating, but I’d say this one would probably get an “R” today. I’ve seen worse violence and gore in modern flicks, but disturbing is disturbing in any decade if you think about it.

There’s a nifty mean twist at the end some of you may seem coming and although there was a Brett Ratner produced “remake” made not too long ago, I’d skip it because although it’s a LOT more polished, it dumps the sleazy exploitation elements and turns the story into one of a bank robbery gone awry (huh?) and the three brothers who fail at it escaping to their mother’s home only to find it occupied by new tenants. So it keeps the home invasion and a few revenge elements, but makes mom a much sexier Rebecca De Mornay and that alone shakes things up way too much. If anything, icky business aside, the original is still the better film, but “better” isn’t necessarily a recommendation unless you know what you’re getting into.