I admit that I slept on Marshmallow after hearing that it’s a summer camp slasher. I’ve seen plenty of summer camp slashers. They’re not bad. Not at all. But I’m not really going to get excited about a new IP summer camp slasher that I didn’t hear/read a ton of buzz about. Even if there was buzz, I may have slept on it anyway. Bottom line is, I’m a sleeper. But now that I’m clearing out queues from several streaming services, I figured it’s time to give it a shot. So I did! And now… you can read what I thought about it! Let’s get into it, shall we?
Morgan is a geeky kid who can’t seem to make friends. His mom seems to think this is a great reason to send him off to summer camp. She even mentions that a friend of the family is sending their kid too. A kid who is an asshole according to Morgan. When he gets to camp, he’s quickly clocked as a newbie and treated accordingly by most. But a few kids are nice to him and bring him into their circle. After a spooky campfire tale of a mad scientist who conducts experiments on kids, the campers pack off to their bunks. Unfortunately, they don’t get a good night’s rest because it would seem that the campfire tale might not be just a legend after all!
I definitely should not have slept on this movie (and neither should you)! This is a great kids vs. evil misadventure. The film uses a lot of slasher tropes but it isn’t necessarily a slasher. And the masked bad guy is uniquely designed with a headlamp and leather (vinyl?) apron. The kids are isolated in a couple of ways too. The counselors are mostly assholes and the other kids are too. So our plucky protagonists have to fend off the threat on their own. This leads to this particular “losers club” being uniquely positioned to uncover the mystery behind the threat. And to fight back! I’m being intentionally vague because the story is clever and twisty and I don’t want to give anything away. If you’re a fan of slashers, It, kids on bikes adventures, and/or Stranger Things, then you should dig this one.
The Final Cut: Marshmallow is a fun, scary kids vs. evil tale wrapped in a familiar summer camp slasher package but with a unique twist.
