Slash/Back (now on Shudder) is one of the most charming and refreshing tales about a ragtag group of teenage girls battling mean and ravenous aliens that you are ever likely to see.
The directorial debut from Nyla Innuksuk is a sweet and entertaining sci-fi horror that comes over as a mishmash of such classics as The Thing, Bad Taste, and Attack The Block.
The film is set in the breathtaking backdrop of Pangnirtung, Nunavut, a sleepy hamlet nuzzled in the majestic mountains of Baffin Island in the Arctic Ocean, which only adds to its wondrous appeal.
Innuksuk’s debut is strikingly alluring but there’s also plenty of action and adolescent chicanery throughout to keep you glued to your screen.
While Slash/Back is reminiscent of many 1980s teen favourites, it is also a remarkable piece of cinema in its own right that feels unlike anything else that has come before it. This really is an exhilarating and original horror with an indigenous twist.
There are moments throughout where I can’t help think of the bolshy E.T. kids when these gutsy young Inuit girls take to their bikes. However, when the black alien blood starts flying and human bodies, polar bears, and other wildlife are soon taken over by these nasty space critters, it’s clear that these gals are in a whole other league and clearly not to be messed with.
Slash/Back gets pretty schlocky and the script often feels a little sluggish but is clearly coming from a very good place and its hard not to be won over by its Shaun of the Dead-style tomfoolery and contorted and often disturbing visuals.
The film opens in a sleepy Inuit village with 24-hour sunlight as Maika and her kick-ass friends prepare for another dull day talking about boys, getting lost on their phones, and falling out with each other. Underestimated in their own lives and weary of their humdrum existence, they crave adventure but end up biting off more than they can chew.
Clearly though, no one told these alien characters that “you don’t f*** with the girls from Pang!”
(4/5)
