At first glance, nothing seems to be appealing about the new horror film Slither. In typical horror movie fashion, giant red slugs chase hapless South Carolina bumpkins up and down farm houses, through bathtubs, and other charming facets of small-town America. When a slug finally reaches its victim, the poor bastard turns into a staggering zombie intent on feasting on the flesh of the living...surprise surprise, right? And ostensibly, the movie has all of the makings of the most formulaic horror movie that ever reached the silver screen.
Despite its outward trappings, however, Slither accomplishes what very few horror movies successful can: camp. The movie knows that its premise is ridiculous, and responds by making the cheesiest and most sarcastic movie possible. All of the Southerners are stereotypic hicks, with enough "hee-haws" and guns to make Charlton Heston giggle in delight. None of the characters can tolerate each other, so when zombies aren't taking chunks out of the few humans that remain, the smartasses are spewing out insults. Of course, the main character Bill (Nathan Fillion) is nigh invincible, but with all laugh-out-loud moments, the audience can easily forget the predictability. Need two more reasons to see Slither? One, Penn alumna Elizabeth Banks stars as Starla, the main heroine, and two, there's a zombie deer. Seriously, a zombie deer.
