Just Before Dawn (1981) 5/10

Just Before Dawn is yet another film in the slasher in the woods sub genre that dominated 1980-1982. Given its notoriously grisly reputation, Just Before Dawn didn't meet my expectations.

Here we go again, by the numbers kids go to camp out in the woods to have sex and do drugs but are stalked and killed by a freak/monster/killer/psycho family. Nothing new here.

Even though the film features academy award winning actor George Kennedy most of the acting here sucks, including his. My guess is '81 was a lean year for the Cool Hand Luke alumni. All the gore here is off camera and since the acting blows, i didn't really care about the characters untimely demises. The killers themselves were a fairly creepy blend of hillbilly redneck and mentally retarded misfit but nothing really out of the ordinary. The directing is bland and the pacing is about par for the style and time it was made in. Nothing new, nothing terrible.

Just Before Dawn is nothing of real merit, just another slasher in the woods flick. If thats your thing, check it out, but make sure you see The Burning first. Thats a much better addition to the sub-genre.

Gore-mild

Nudity-mild

Overall - 5/10