First thing you notice about the 2021 Netflix film ‘A Classic Horror Story’ is the annoying intro music, a retro Italian number that just doesn’t blend well with a bloody scene it opens with. Full points for starting off with gore – a petrified woman covered in blood is tied up on a wooden slab, like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered.
Directed by Roberto De Feo, Paolo Strippoli, this Italian film is about how a group of strangers car-pooling together wake up in the middle of the woods after an accident. A creepy cottage makes it evident that they are trapped in an area inhabited by a weird cult that does human sacrifices, so they need to find a way out of the place before the cultists kill them off.
Like the title of the film, the makers use the usual tropes, so for those who have seen enough of the genre will be able to second-guess pretty much everything that’s going to happen. The makers subtly poke fun of the genre through the course of the film and virtually admit to borrowing ideas from cult hits. Had they aimed for horror-comedy, with more witticism and humor, instead of the serious tone, it could’ve been a lot more fun. But instead, ‘A Classic Horror Story’ is a boring mash of ideas, and a talented bunch of actors does little to uplift the movie.
There was on stand-out murder shot towards the climax that was quite applaud-worthy, but except for that one scene, everything else is pretty forgettable about this production.
It’s a 4.5/10 from me.