REVIEW - 'The Burning' (1981)

Released in May of 1981, “The Burning” often gets a bad rap for being a “Friday the 13th” rip-off. True, it was released a year after this film, but the scripts were in fact worked on simultaneously. And while “Friday” would created a fictional legend of Jason Voorhees, “The Burning” rode on the coattails of an urban legend of a man named ‘Cropsey,’ a maniac who stalked various part of New York, most notably Staten Island. So, piggybacking on the growing interest in campfire horror, director Tony Laylam along with writers Brad Grey, Peter Lawrence, and Bob and Harvey Weinstein (yes, ugh) penned a script for this, “The Burning—” the story of a camp caretaker that gets burned in a horrible accident and comes back to exact his revenge on those that disfigured him…as well as anyone else who gets in his way.

“The Burning” has some interesting things going for it, such as its creepy camp sequences and keeping the film low-key and away from the supernatural. The opening is decidedly creepy, which portrays a gaggle of male teens playing a prank on Cropsy, played by Lou David. The prank goes horribly wrong, and Cropsy catches on fire, seemly burning to death before disappearing into the lake. Of course, Cropsy is not dead, and soon re-emerges at the hospital he is taken to, where he makes his way out and begins a killing spree that begins with a prostitute.

I’m going to be transparent and admit I didn’t love this film. I’m a fan of ’80s horror—especially campfire horror—but something about “The Burning” just didn’t do it for me. Sure, it boasts a setting and plot apropos for the time, involving a group of adolescents cramped into a campsite, raging with hormones, just waiting to meet the killer’s blade one-by-one. But several elements make for a confusing mess. For starters, there are just too many possible victims. Unlike “Friday the 13th,” which involves an abandoned camp being prepared for opening, “The Burning” showcases a fully-functioning camp, rife with adolescents of varying degrees of un-likability. Bullying, fights, and squabbles line most of its run-time, as well as one youth named Glazer who antagonizes another youth for no reason other than he’s the token ‘Alpha Male,’ which is even more sinister than it should be because his victim, a shy weirdo named Alfred, is a Peeping Tom who doesn’t garner much sympathy, if any.

Ned Eisenberg and Jason Alexander in “The Burning” (Miramax Films, 1981).

Of course, ‘the Cropsy Maniac’ deserves his revenge after his titular burning by a group of boys at the film’s onset—but his inclusion is not treated with the same Boogey Man status as many other slasher films. And while “Friday the 13th” was renowned for its creative death sequences, “The Burning” can only be heralded for its laziness. Aside from the film’s opening whereby a hooker is grotesquely murdered with a pair of scissors, the film’s antagonist kills nearly every victim with a pair of gardening shears. Stabbings, throat cuttings, and even forehead slashes are seen in detail. But missing are the creepy build-ups to attacks; a bombastic score underlined by shrill violins announces his presence, and the murders are really poorly edited. The cinematography by Harvey Harrison focuses much too long on gore that is totally unrealistic. There are a few stalking frights, but most of the deaths occur out in the open, in broad daylight. And while a fan favorite, a particular attack by Cropsy on a raft of teens I found to be utterly ridiculous.

It would be unfair to fail to mention that “The Burning” would be the first major starring roles of “Seinfeld’s” Jason Alexander and actress Holly Hunter—but they blend in to a movie that has too many stars for any one to stand out. Alexander is probably the best and would have made a great final standing protagonist, but here is relegated to a simple horny teenager.

“The Burning” also can’t help but depart from the innocence of some other slashers in terms of its characters’ intentions. Anti-women sentiment and misogyny run through the screenplay, including bro talk and one uncomfortable sequence which is nothing short of attempted rape. You may criticize my use of the word “innocent” in relation to slashers. But when we see a pretty girl in “Friday the 13th Part 2” come on strong to a fellow camper who is confined to a wheelchair, versus the meat-headed males and creepy treatment of women in this film, it’s a hard pass for me.

In fairness, “The Burning” will likely please the slasher horror crowd. It has a strong cult following, with many believing this film the ultimate camper horror with “Friday the 13th” and Jason Voorhees far behind. To me it’s an exercise in futility. It’s script is over-cumbered, its deaths are hackneyed, and it lacks the innocent weekend away motif that made so many other films of its ilk a success. It’s creepy throwback horror and will entertain its intended audience. But amidst a decade filled with copycats, “The Burning” fades into the crowd as one of its lesser entries.