The ’80s was the decade where action films first came to the fore. Whilst Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee may have pioneered the first Asian invasion of martial arts films, it was the likes of Sly Stallone, Arnie and Chuck Norris who made the genre big business in America. Whilst The Zero Boys may be a a horror film at heart, the male leads are very much from the same mould as John Rambo or John Matrix.
The Zero Boys are proud members of a paintball team comprising Steve (Daniel Hirsch), Larry (Tom Shell), and Rip (Jared Moses). After winning their latest tournament, the trio head off to the mountains with their girlfriends. However, they inadvertently stumble upon a house full of gruesome contents and find themselves becoming prey for a group of twisted hunters.
The Zero Boys is very much a ‘B’ Movie and comes along with all the trapping that entails, with a large dose of the ’80s thrown in for good measure. It’s as daft as you’d expect but it’s also surprisingly entertaining and gory. Whilst ‘cabin in the woods’ films are hardly unique, director Nico Mastorakis puts a slightly different slant on proceedings, rendering The Zero Boys a rather entertaining and (often unintentionally) amusing slasher flick.
The Zero Boys is released on dual format DVD and Blu-ray by Arrow Video and is out today.
