In a Violent Nature is an exercise in subversion. This sets it apart from its ilk because writer/director Chris Nash has a clear point of view, he has a clear objective, and he's not trying to please typical horror movie audiences (who will likely hate this film).
First, the slasher tropes are flipped and we follow Johnny, the supernatural killer who is awoken by happenstance by an initially unseen young man. Through the forest we follow Johnny step by step, with a deliberate, languid pace, as he hunts for a charmed necklace meant to keep him in slumber. Revenge is his motivation but there's so much more to this story some of it never revealed. The dumb teens with dumb dialogue are all just buzzing flies in the periphery of the screen.
Second, the typical jarring music cues, jump scares, sudden cuts are all thrown out. What’s left is surprisingly serene and visceral, dumbfounding and viscous. It’s a beautiful, horrible, sloooowww experience and with a sound design that works overtime to establish the forest scene. There's unexpected and intentional humor and dark humor on Johnny's journey and even a motion-sensor light gets a laugh.
Third, for an arthouse-elevated-horror minded film, the kills are ultra gory, painful, laborious, extremely gruesome and off-putting. There’s no fun here and the viewer has no choice but to sit and squirm in horror. This may be too much for the arthouse-elevated-horror minded viewer.
Finally, even its own killer-centric conceit is abandoned for an extended epilogue where little happens in a car ride. If you've ever wondered what happens to that final girl when she is rescued and what that conversation would be like, then you're are in luck. The long scene is perplexing because after decades of horror movie watching we as an audience sit and (im)patiently wait for a final lurch from the killer to get the final girl. The tension is ratcheted for no sensible reason other than our own expectations. The final girl stares with terror out the car door (WHY DID THEY STOP!!) and the long shot reveals a quiet wilderness. Our eyes frantically scan the scene looking for Johnny. The rescuer then disappears entirely from the screen (Johnny got her!!) and our nails dig into our chair waiting, and waiting... and then the unimaginable happens… the credits roll.
It’s brilliant and frustrating experiment that often succeeds against all common sense and will divide horror fans with its intellectual approach and backhanded commentary.
I liked it up until that car ride. Felt like it killed the momentum. I wish it had stuck with the Johnny guy into his aftermath and going back to unconsciousness or whatever. But until then, I really had fun.