Die Die Delta Pi (2015)
Starring Kristin Avery, Lexi Balestrieri, Christine Bell
Directed by Sean Donohue and Christopher Leto
When ANY filmmaker attempts a “throwback pic” to the decade of the 80’s, I’ll admit that I can get a wee bit apprehensive when the product finally reaches my grimy mitts. Whether it’s simply the unattainable atmosphere to be encapsulated within, or the fact that I’m such a goob when it comes to popping in a VHS tape and transporting myself back to the days of neon EVERYTHING, poofy hair, and synthesized music that somehow distinguished itself far ahead from the synthesized music I detest today. Anyway, co-directors Sean Donohue and Christopher Leto are in the batter’s box with their backwards heave to the campy-sorority slash-fests from the Reagan era with Die Die Delta Pi.
Lean back to the year 1986, and Spring Break festivities are on the immediate horizon. The Delta Pi sorority is clamoring to put together a monumental bash in order to commemorate the annual marathon of debauchery, and they are so intently focused on their fiesta, that even the nearby killings that have occurred close to their college could deter them from such a large celebration. While the party cements itself around a large bonfire, it just wouldn’t be a sorority soiree without a good natured prank on one of the lesser pledges (Olivia Blake), and when that prank goes horribly awry (think cocktail weenie in the flames), things only get worse when another sizeable set of murders occur while help is trying to be obtained for the toasted co-ed.
We transport ourselves some 28 years into the future, and the memory of that horrific night is still fresh in the mind of one woman (Andrea Alfonso), who is readying her own daughter, Diana, (Avery) for her collegiate career at Mom’s alma mater – see where I’m steering this one? All the chips are on the table, and we’ve got ourselves a recipe for a revenge-styled slay-a-thon, however some things simply just didn’t hit the mark. The dialogue throughout the film came off as people trying to sound 80’s, with lame attempts at period catchphrases and weak jokes, however with a low-budget, it’s not like you’re going to get Meryl Streep to run lines for you, so you take what you can get. Gore and nudity have their place in this nearly 80-minute jump into sinfulness, which definitely remind the 80’s connoisseurs of horror just how we liked our cheese and sleaze back in the day.
In the end, I’ll offer some praise to both Donohue and Leto for their valiant undertaking, and while this particular retro-presentation reeks of lower-level chills and thrills, it’s something that you’ll be able to pitch in your DVD player and disembark to the decade of leg-warmers and Cosby-sweaters for at least a one-time viewing…but please, don’t wear them at the same time, especially in public – now THAT would be horrific.
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Film
Categorized:Reviews
