Shudder’s New Slasher Doesn’t Make Much Sense, But It’s Lots Of Fun Regardless

Does a movie need to make sense to be entertaining? Not necessarily, but it largely depends on the focus of the story. The latest Shudder Exclusive, Bloody Axe Wound, is a good example of why nonsense sometimes works.

Nonsensical World-Building

The part of Bloody Axe Wound that is most likely to lose sticklers for logic is revealed at the very beginning of the movie. The opening scene shows Abbie following a popular slasher, Butch Slater, as he makes a couple of kills. The first scene transitions into the next by pulling back and revealing Butch’s antics displayed on a television screen. This is where we are briefly introduced to the idea that, in this world, slashers are real, and the movies they star in contain real murder.

There are already some glaring issues here. Most obviously is that, as we watch the scene of Abbie following Butch, no cameras are seen anywhere. There is no film crew following Butch or Abbie. Instead, they are shown to be alone with their victims, and then their actions somehow show up, edited together, on a video tape. Further scenes show this as well. No cameras and no crew, but a movie is somehow being made. No explanation of how this works is ever given.

As Bloody Axe Wound continues, more questions arise. Bladecut’s video store is open to the public, and we see at least one person—the mother of a potential victim—watching Butch Slater’s movie at home. It is also shown that the people of the town know about the killings which have gone on for years. So, if anyone can watch these movies, wouldn’t many of the victims have been recognized by family and friends? How could this be happening for so long without the citizens making a connection between the movies and their town’s long history of murder?

Plus, there are questions about logistics. Who is editing the movies? Where are the marketing materials being made? Are the movies only available locally? And, again since it is such an important point, how are the killers’ actions being filmed with no cameras?! No answer is given to any of these questions. There aren’t even any attempts at explanations. The existence of this nonsensical slasher business model is stated as fact, and then we are hurried along to focus on other things. And yet, strangely, it all works.

It Doesn’t Really Matter, Does It?

There are a few reasons why Bloody Axe Wound doesn’t really need to strictly adhere to logic. First is that it’s a comedy. It’s meant to be light and humorous. There is a lot of meta commentary about slasher movies, and it contains many elements of parody even though it ultimately falls more in line with a straightforward slasher-comedy. Still, some of the comedy is ridiculous, so a few gaps in logic shouldn’t be too troublesome for viewers.

Also, there are other parts of the movie that don’t receive explanations either. For example, Bladecut is an undead slasher who gets killed sometimes, but Abbie buries him, and he comes back to life. Is this explained? No, but it’s a horror trope, and this is a comedy, so does it really matter? No, not really.

But you might be thinking that, since the entire plot is built upon this idea that slasher villains are real movie stars, then there needs to be some sort of logic built into that conceit. You’re not wrong. A movie doesn’t need to make sense in real-world logic, but most of the time it should make sense by the logic created for its particular story. Bloody Axe Wound gets around this “rule” by simply avoiding all explanations.

That might sound like a cheat, but here’s what I mean. We are told everything that we need to know in order to understand the motivations of Abbie and her father. It’s a family business and Abbie wants to join in, but Roger Bladecut is reluctant to let her slash. That’s all we need to get on Abbie’s side and enjoy her journey. Nothing else about the setup is essential, so no further explanations are necessary.