Hands of Hell is an impressive indie slasher out of Texas. Screenwriters Gianna Lutz and Andrew Evans craft a worthy homage to the horror subgenre that is as creative as it is self-aware. Psychotic murderers Bianca (Gianna Lutz), and Zeke (Adam Kitchen) escape from prison and murder the proprietors of a secluded lakeside retreat. Soon enough, guests start to arrive, and the two mercilessly toy with their new prey. With cell signals maxing at one bar, and a pair of couples to play with, Bianca and Zeke play a cruel game of murder with their guests. Lutz co-writes, stars, and directs a noteworthy horror movie that manages to rise above budget to consistently entertain regardless of falling into a few indie production pitfalls.

We open on a sweet, but far too long scene that establishes the sweet proprietors of a quaint retreat. Killers, Bianca and Zeke arrive and take control of the place, so to speak and we finally have our setup. Clueless guests arrive soon after and Bianca and Zeke spot the chance to have some fun. Among the guests are gay couple Brett (Antonio Neville) and Marcus (Hondo Tey) and, in another group, Logan (Britton Emert), Blake (Brady Box), Erica (Abby Anderson), Dylan (Chase Walker), and Stacey (Arianna Camacho Mcpike). Each one has their own bizarre moment with either Bianca or Zeke. Yet, in true slasher fashion, the targets ignore the red flags and try to salvage what they can of a weird situation. While the bloodbath proceeds at the retreat, Detective Thomas (Paul A. Rossi) and Detective Potter (Charlie Kingery) trace the escape of the two psychopaths.

A few threads are running through Hands of Hell but to the credit of writers Lutz and Evans, they keep their ducks, or victims, in a row. We never lose a sense of time or place as the film jumps around various storylines and narratives and that is something to be commended. It’s not always interesting, it’s sometimes repetitive, but we are never confused.

Hands of Hell is not perfect but it is a spirited independent project that wants nothing more than to entertain. Gianna Lutz and Andrew Evans pay tribute to everything from Texas Chainsaw Massacre to The Devil’s Rejects to offer devoted horror fans a thrilling ride but the shackles are apparent. Gore effects are minimized to cutaway reactions and splatters when we need to see the goods. Reduced coverage is the result of inexperience or budgetary constraints.

What Gianna Lutz and Andrew Evans and the Hands of Hell team nails is inclusion and a love of the genre. Among the prominent characters are a queer couple… in Texas. What’s more, nobody is victimized on account of identity, but rather a lack of initiative or common sense. That’s really what slashers are all bout anyway.

Hands of Hell is a consistently entertaining indie that deserves consideration for what it is; an earnest, indie, stab at the slasher genre.

6 Out of 10