Vote or Die: Macabre Daily Celebrates “Founders Day!”
The ‘90s horror vibes are strong.
Hyperbole is a problem in the world of online film criticism. This isn’t a new observation, by any means. I’ll be the first to admit I overuse “bonkers” way too much when describing moments in movies that are seemingly pulled out of the abyss of the imagination. Believe me, when I tell you that the ending of “Founders Day,” the new film from Erik Bloomquist (co-written and co-produced with his brother Carson Bloomquist), is so incredibly, off-the-wall bonkers, you have to admire them.
“Founders Day” takes place in the fictional New England town of Fairwood (actually New Milford, CT, a quaint little burg just down the road from the town that inspired “Gilmore Girls”). The incumbent Mayor Gladwell (Amy Hargreaves), an egocentric bureaucrat, is challenged by Harold Faulkner (Jayce Bartok), an angry local who doesn’t understand why his teenage kids don't want to be used as campaign props. His son Adam (Devin Druid) wants nothing to do with him, and his daughter Melissa (Olivia Nikkanen) clings to her girlfriend Allison (Naomi Grace) who’s soon leaving for college. A masked killer interrupts their date one night and kills Melissa as Allison escapes, and they’re just getting started.
Harold (Jayce Bartok) faces off with Mayor Gladwell (Amy Hargreaves) over who should die first.
Much of the film is a boilerplate ‘90s slasher. The cops are inept, the kids are troubled, and the parents are useless. In fact, it feels like most of the adults are in an entirely different movie than the teenagers. Hargreaves and Bartok look like they’re having a blast, playing against type as the vamping Mayor and her opponent, who can barely conceal his rage. The plethora of terrible authority figures lends itself to the whodunnit aspect because, well, everyone’s a suspect. Even Allison’s caring father Thomas (Andrew Stewart-Jones) and sensitive teacher Mr. Jackson (William Russ, looking like a wisened Bruce Davison). The killer really could be anyone because everyone is drowning in grievances.
For a political slasher, “Founders Day” doesn’t revolve around any issues, and that’s the point. There’s no “old mill” that Faulkner is trying to save before Mayor Gladwell demolishes it for luxury condos. Nothing is personal for them besides the belief that they should be in charge, dammit. The Bloomquists work this angle to the film’s benefit, which counteracts some of the film’s early blandness. The kills take a while to ramp up, but they have some nasty surprises in store (a movie theater scene is a grisly highlight). A minor detail, but the slasher’s costume looks good, especially at a time when John Carver is setting a new standard. The “Founder” has a creepy ornate mask that doesn’t look too overcomplicated like some other modern designs. I’m not naming names, but you can’t always have “Purge”-quality masks in EVERY film with a masked killer.
The Founder. Damn fine costume.
All of which leads to the aforementioned ending, which I wouldn’t dream of spoiling. Just imagine the endings of the first two (and best) “Scream” films put in a blender. The last 10 minutes are an unfurling ball of revelations so nuts that I half-expected Benoit Blanc to show up and explain it all. Audacity goes a long way for me, especially as the new crop of slasher films defines itself.
Ultimately, “Founders Day” might work best for slasher completists, but its timely message, cool slasher costume, and (I cannot stress this enough) “bonkers” ending make it stick out from the pack. It’s somehow Erik Bloomquist’s EIGHTH film as a director across multiple genres, and he’s steadily making a name for himself in independent horror. There’s just something about Connecticut…
Founders Day is now available on VOD.
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