Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Don't Believe the Hype

A Disappointing Continuation

It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

Here's an original setting for a slasher film: A summer camp! Well, actually "The Burning" was one of the first slasher movies to be set at a summer camp, so I don't think it's fair to accuse its setting as not being original. And unlike many other slashers of the era, this one looks somewhat more polished and expensive. But all the same, I was disappointed with the final results. One complaint that I read from another IMDb user stating that the movie has far more talk than horror material is indeed true. For example, after the first killing (in the first ten minutes of the movie), you have to wait almost forty more minutes before the next killing. And it's not like the youth characters doing all this talking in the movie are sympathetic or likable, though I got a kick out of one character looking like Pauly Shore. As for the horror elements, they too are disappointing for the most part. Tom Savini's gore and makeup effects run hot and cold, and the scenes with the killer doing his thing are for the most part not particularly well staged, especially the disappointing final confrontation. (Though I admit the raft scene has some punch.) Maybe die hard slasher fans will enjoy this - it's definitely better than a lot of other slashers of this period. But if you're not a slasher fan, I'd suggest you look for something else to watch.

Gory, excellent, scary and very i Cool totally a horror classic, this is what you look for in a slasher film, a creepy killer, great gore, suspense, and hilarious actor's this movie was so fun and totally worth it, today this is what horror needs., now lets get on to the real stuff, the burning would get a 9.5/10 for me because it basically is a enjoyable film and is a visual masterpiece to slasher collection and will always be one of my favorites

With Tom Savini doing the makeup, Rick Wakeman on keyboards, and Bob and Harvey Weinstein on story duties (forming Miramax while they're about it), The Burning is a notable entry in the slasher genre. Released in 1981, it rode on the coattails of Halloween and Friday the 13th, and in terms of quality it can stand proud alongside those better-known movies.The prologue sets up our monster. A group of boys at a summer camp decide to play a Halloween prank on the caretaker, Cropsy (Lou David). As they guffaw, the joke goes horribly wrong and in his fright Cropsy sets himself on fire.A decade on and the summer camp is in full swing. We're introduced to the horny boys and girls (keep an eye out for early performances from the likes of Jason Alexander, Fisher Stevens, and Holly Hunter), who spend their time bickering, bullying, boating, and bonking. But Cropsy is back, and he has a pair of secateurs, and he wants revenge. After numerous well-staged red herrings, the slaughter begins. And it doesn't disappoint. Savini's work here is of the stabby and slashy variety, and it's appropriately wince-inducing. We get heroics from the camp counsellors Michelle (Leah Ayres) and Todd (Brian Matthews) but essentially it's a free-for-all, and anyone's guess who'll finally take down the homicidal gardener. That's not to say that the characters are mere fodder. The film takes time to establish the lusts and rivalries in the group, mostly without resorting to cliché. I particularly like the way that the bullying beefcake (Larry Joshua) is repeatedly pushed back by the camaraderie of the nerdy kids. The sexual politics are typically retrograde, with endless excuses to show as much nubile flesh as humanly possible. And then stick a knife in it. While atmospheric, gory, and funny without being self-mocking, there's nothing particularly innovative about The Burning – it doesn't have the memorable weirdness of 1983's Sleepaway Camp, for example – but it's well-made and sharply written enough that you are swept along on its ruthless tide of gore. It's just a pity the good work doesn't carry right through to the end. Aside from a mild and needless twist, the final showdown is a mess of scrappy editing and baffling continuity, as if the filmmakers were scrabbling for footage. With a proper climax we might have been looking at classic rather than curio status. Overall, it's understandable why The Burning has achieved its cult following. Ignored on release, it deserves reappraisal as a straightforward, unfussy slasher elevated by good writing, great performances, and even better makeup effects. Now in HD!

Any fan of the genre of 80's horror will love this movie, but beneath the norm of gory deaths, naked teens and campfire stories there lies a truly great movie behind the surface. The storytelling is great, the build up and character development is sensational for a slasher movie, and if the wonderfully gruesome special effects aren't enough to keep you hooked the magnificent plot will. Apart from a great story this movie does what many other in it's genre fail to do - scare you! There are many edge-of-your-seat moments and genuinely frightening scenes. Overall it is a great movie which is underrated by many, I would put it up there with the likes of Friday 13th and Halloween, it's a shame it doesn't get recognized in popular culture like the two aforementioned do because it's really a top drawer horror movie. It's refreshing that an 80's slasher movie can have such an original plot and back-story, but it doesn't stray too far from it's roots leaving both hardcore horror fans and casual movie watchers satisfied.