Killing Ground

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Well, I for one, quite enjoyed this movie. It was an unexpected pleasure. I didn't go in with high hopes and was pleasantly surprised. I think that what I enjoyed most about it was the fact that it wasn't full of Hollywood schlock. There were some intense scenes that I never would expect to see in a big-budget Hollywood film. I say kudos for straying beyond the norm in this regard. I've seen quite a few reviews that complain about the non-linear storytelling and use of flashbacks. I'm not sure what the big deal is. Lots of movies do this. It wasn't too difficult to understand what was happening. As for the ambiguous ending, I'm completely okay with it. It seems like some of those people that complain about open-ended endings and non-linear storytelling insist on having their entertainment spoon-fed to them. Personally, I like that I was made to think a bit about what might have been. I'm kind of hoping for a sequel; Killing Ground II: The Adventures of Ollie and Banjo. This one, of course, would be a family film about a toddler and a dog who travel around solving mysteries.

The moment that guy threw the baby on the ground I immediately hated the movie. I also hate how we never see the outcome of what happens to the child. I'm a total horror fanatic, but when it comes to toddlers and babies...there's a line to be drawn in horror films.

Killing Grounds was, at first, a tough watch for me. Seeing how much realism and detail was added to the scenes made me truly feel bad for the victims. One of my favorite parts about this film was their use of the past and present families and showing the stories connect with one another. On top of this, props to the creators not using cheesy jump scares to try and score a cheap shot with the audience. Instead they help develop all of the characters so you feel for each one, good and bad. Overall, a great twisted horror film that will keep you engaged at all parts, with a bit of a lack luster ending. 7/10