Blood Stalkers

Micro-budget cabin-in-the-woods flick in the swamps of Florida

Two married couples go out to an inherited hunting lodge, which has been vacant for eight years. They experience curious resistance from the yokels when they ask about the place. Worse, they’re in for a night to dismember.

"Blood Stalkers" (1976), aka “The Night Daniel Died,” was obviously inspired by “Deliverance,” but also includes some (possible) swamp ape frolics. It starts out surprisingly well for a spare change Indie, as you get to know the four protagonists, although it starts to drag a bit. Voluptuous Cisse Cameron as Jeri is a highlight and so is blonde Toni Crabtree as Kim, the latter appearing in a tame nighttime skinny dipping sequence (just a heads up).

After the midpoint, unfortunately, there’s an extended nighttime sequence that’s too dark and tedious, which reflects lousy filmmaking. However, the bad parts are usually counterbalanced by effective sequences such as the artistic black church segment. The violent close is well done, all things considered, and I liked the explanation.

Ken Miller, who plays the secondary protagonist (Daniel), was 43 during shooting in June, 1975, while Cisse Cameron, who plays his wife, was 21. I bring this up because someone complained about how much older he was than her. But Cisse could easily pass for mid-30s, so it’s not really an issue. And, besides, it’s not like husbands being significantly older than their wives is rare.

Some of the music was composed by Stan Webb, who went on to contribute a song to “Thelma & Louise.” The rest was done by Blood Sweat and Tears, who were uncredited to save money.

This was the sole flick directed by the writer/director, who happens to play the bald yokel in the film. He supposedly saw Bigfoot when he was 21 and appeared in four sasquatch documentaries between 1972-76, not to mention lectured at colleges and universities before retiring to western Montana.

"Blackwater" (2007) is a better movie of this no-budget Indie sort, which involves four women as the protagonists rather than two couples.

It runs 1 hour, 34 minutes, and was shot in southeastern Florida at Fort Lauderdale and the Everglades just west of there.

GRADE: C/C- (4.5/10)