Within the opening few minutes, I noticed the stunning photography and visuals. Since I enjoy attention to detail and a director's effort to make a film look good on screen, 'Dark Harvest' already won me over within the first couple of minutes.
Every year just before Halloween, a scarecrow named Sawtooth Jack (not sure why the synopsis says October Boy, as this is never mentioned in the film) comes to life to kill teenagers. Days before, teens taking part in The Run are locked in their rooms and starved for three days. Thereafter, they go out hunting Sawtooth Jack. The winner receives money and a luxury car, and his parents receive a big house. This 'sacrifice' ensures a good crop for the rest of the year.
Richie's brother Jim won The Run the previous year, received his car and is believed to be traveling the world. He hasn't been seen or heard of since. This year, Richie is determined to do the Run. His parents tries to forbid him, and their actions convinced me there was more than meets the eye to this annual event.
There's a great deal of gore in the film, with kill scenes swift and unexpectedly. The make-up effects are really good. The film is atmospheric and as mentioned earlier, this film looks darn amazing! I've seen many scarecrow movies over the years, but I think this is still one of the scariest looking scarecrow villains. In fact, Sawtooth Jack reminded me a bit of a younger Pumpkinhead.
There are twists almost until the moment the credits roll, and when it does, some viewers might be disappointed at the outcome, and some might be excited with the prospect of a sequel or even a franchise. I enjoyed this very much.
