Two couples find themselves stranded in a remote rural area of the Northeast after their car breaks down, where they run into some unsettling locals living in a rundown cabin (played by Simon Phillips, Michael Swatton, and others) who are holding a pregnant woman captive (Samantha De Benedet). “Butchers” (2020) is a wilderness slasher that establishes an atmosphere of ordinary, serious authenticity akin to the feeling found in "Wolf Creek" (2005), unlike “Wrong Turn” (2003), which became progressively over-the-top. Do you recall the scene in "Wrong Turn" where the characters attempted to escape the hillbillies by climbing into trees? That’s exactly the kind of thing! The sequel, "Wrong Turn 2: Dead End" (2007), is even more exaggerated and unbelievable. I don't want to say they are bad, because they have plenty of gore and are entertaining for what they are, but they just don't really generate a sense of dread. “Butchers” manages to do that. It brings to mind the grounded rural horror seen in "The Shuttered Room" (1967) and "Deliverance" (1972), but approached from a slasher perspective and made on a smaller scale, though you wouldn't guess it based on how well-made it is. Besides De Benedet (Celeste), Julie Mainville (Jenna) and Anne-Carolyne Binette (Taylor) are also featured prominently among the female characters. What keeps it from getting a better score? It’s possibly too bleak and somber for its own benefit, so it's not really an enjoyable movie like the "Friday the 13th" films—which is actually what I liked about it in the first place. Also, they could have developed the female characters more, especially Anne-Carolyne Binette’s role. The film has a running time of 1 hour and 32 minutes and was filmed in the Eastern Ontario townships of Merrickville-Wolford and Elizabethtown-Kitley, as well as Cumberland Heritage Village, all located near Ottawa and south toward the St. Lawrence River. GRADE: B-

Source on TMDB