There's Nothing out There (1990) Reviews

This ultra-low-budget horror comedy, released directly to home video, distinguishes itself from its less amusing slasher kin by positioning tongue firmly in cheek and toying with the established conventions of the horror genre -- a device which would later be employed by Wes Craven in the 1996 blockbuster Scream, albeit with Hollywood financial muscle and big-name stars. The premise involves the usual group of obnoxious teens, who spend a weekend at an isolated mountain cabin despite local legends that a hideous monster is lurking in the surrounding woods. As the inevitable bloodbath begins, the group's only salvation comes from a zealous horror-movie buff, who attempts to teach the rapidly dwindling group the proper survival skills by describing the usual fatal errors committed by the average horror victim. Sadly, his directives are heeded too late, as more bad actors become fatally entwined in the seldom-seen monster's rubbery tentacles. Whether or not Craven or Scream writer Kevin Williamson had seen or heard of this film prior to their neo-slasher epic, the jokey excesses of this zero-budget exercise create the impression of a mere throwaway gag, instead of using macabre irony as the engine that drives the plot. ~ Cavett Binion, Rovi