Hellmare

Rumak szatana

a full-blown love affair with B-movies a mysterious legend a video store nightmare bloody mayhem cult movies death stable flayed face killer in a horse mask Lloyd Kaufman as a grandfather lots of blood psychic cop slasher straw coming out of your shoes the 1990s too much weed unrestrained fun vhs video tapes

Hellmare

An absurd, bloody, low-budget slasher from cult studio Troma

A group of friends gets their hands on a VHS tape of a legendary horror film and is sucked into the movie, where a horse-masked maniac hunts them down. An absurd, bloody horror comedy from the Troma stable, made for anyone who misses the glorious madness of the VHS rental era.

“Hellmare” is a film shrouded in legend. All anyone knows is that everyone who has seen it has mysteriously disappeared. No one has ever seen the actors who appeared in it, its director vanished without a trace, and for years “Hellmare” remained a legendary video-store rarity, passed around under the counter. Fans of B-movies and horror have dreamed of finally seeing it, unaware of what they would actually be getting themselves into. It’s the 1990s. A group of friends gets their hands on a copy of “Hellmare”. They press play and… are sucked into the movie. Who will survive, and who will end up with their face carved up by a maniac in a horse mask? Place your bets.

“Hellmare” is a comedy horror made out of pure love for genre cinema. Director Victor Gabriel takes viewers on a nostalgic trip: everything in “Hellmare” is a loving nod to B-movies. From the fake trailers playing before the main feature, through the slasher plot and the characters’ discussions about the meaning of “Sleepaway Camp”, to the delirious cocktail of tropes and plot twists spilling across the screen. Gabriel makes it clear that he has watched thousands of movies in his lifetime and knows exactly how to put that knowledge to good use. “Hellmare” takes no prisoners. It charges ahead like a masked psychopath tearing through a summer camp, leaving trails of blood, piles of bodies, and unmistakable evidence of a genuine love for the genre.

Could it really have been any different? “Hellmare” comes from the house of Troma, the legendary studio founded by Lloyd Kaufman, a godfather of American independent genre filmmaking and the creator of cult classics such as “The Toxic Avenger” and “Tromeo and Juliet”. Kaufman is the man who inspired generations of viewers to fall in love with cheap movies made with imagination, shameless humor, and a whole lot of heart (Splat!FilmFest special guest in 2018 and 2025).

“Hellmare” was shot in just thirteen days and made for a mere $11,000. Gabriel proves that great fun and creative ingenuity don’t require deep pockets. The ultimate seal of approval comes from Kaufman himself, who makes a small appearance as the grandfather of one of the characters.

Only filmmakers operating under the Troma banner could get away with this level of bloody absurdity.