Devon's Ghost: Legend of the Bloody Boy (DVD)

How to review Devon’s Ghost? Forgivingly, because it’s so obviously a low-budget, straight-to-video film; or realistically and forthrightly, as I would any other picture?

It’s not a good movie by any means, but I think I’ll concede and take its limitations into account. It’s obvious that the director, cinematographer, and actors are all second-string, but luckily they were buoyed by a pretty decent script (one that borrows very heavily, mind you, from the original Friday the 13th).

The story starts when the small town’s local high school is reopened after laying dormant and unoccupied for years, following a spate of horrible slayings that tainted the campus. At the grand reopening, all anyone wants to talk about is the still-unsolved crimes, and whether or not the opening of the doors will invite Devon, “The Bloody Boy”, back inside.

One of the students, Symphony (Karan Ashley), is haunted by the years-old crimes that she was almost too young to comprehend when they made headlines. Her father was the defense attorney for Devon’s murderous parents, but even he could never explain why the child’s body was never found. When he himself wound up dead, a legend was born: That of a bloody boy, still in his Little League baseball uniform and cap, wielding a deadly bat outfitted with a circular saw. (Clearly, Jason’s hockey mask is just swapped out with a low-brimmed cap, and there is also the “I see people having sex, and I kill” motif, along with an unhealthy maternal bond.)

Symphony’s friends and boyfriend all go along on this journey of terror with her, each with varying degrees of acting ability and survival rates. While the script isn’t half-bad, some of the lines are so silly that even Academy Award winning actors could not make them sound halfway realistic. Speaking of unrealistic, it’s amazing how, in this small, homey country town, everyone seems to be an expert in the martial arts.

If you’re looking for a gory slasher flick with every convention of the genre played out ad infinitum, then Devon’s Ghost might be worth a twirl in the old DVD player. If, however, you’re looking for some able acting and deft direction, it’s three strikes and out for this one.

Reviewed by Staci Layne Wilson