Atmospherically photographed on 35mm film in great locations on Long Island and in Pennsylvania, “Malevolence” is a cut or two above the usual micro-budgeted, starless slasher movies that generally go straight to video.

     Beginning with a Tarantino-esque bank heist that goes horribly wrong, first- time director Stevan Mena tells a fairly taut tale of robbers who abduct a mother and teenage daughter (Samantha Dark and the delightfully feisty Courtney Bertolone) and take them to their remote hideout in the woods. The hostages escape with the robbers in pursuit to a nearby slaughterhouse- where a child who disappeared a decade earlier is prepared to meet out justice on his special own terms.
The acting is uneven and the story isn’t exactly hugely original, but the gore is moderate and the shocks, when they finally come, are honestly earned.