The Final Terror (1986)

A group of forest rangers heads into the forest for a couple days to do some clean up, with plans to be picked by down river. Their driver is an odd guy, kind of menacing and screaming in their faces.  They think he’s a weirdo and refuse his advice of going to a different part of the river..

The first night around the campfire a story is told about a woman who escaped from an asylum and now lives in the woods and murders people. One of the guys scares the others and the driver decides to leave, which is just as well as they don’t like him.   

They wake the next day to find one of their group missing in what turns out to be a prank gone wrong.  After splitting up to search the woods, they regroup. But not only have they not found him, two of the others don’t come back.

As they becomes convinced someone else is in the woods, they make plans to attack a dilapidated cabin where they think their friends are being held.  They also formulate plans on how to catch the killer.  

This movie is different from many slashers in that the group decides to take action rather than splitting up and running away to save themselves.  They have a Vietnam vet in their midst which helps in their combat and planning, although he’s high on mushrooms he found in the cabin so he’s not at his best.

The amazing part of this movie is the killer’s camouflage.  The killer is in the shot but blends in with the rocks, trees and grass. You don’t know he’s there until he stands up or moves.   The movie also has some well known actors prior to their big breaks - Daryl Hannah, Adrian Zmed, and Rachel Ward. Heck, most of the cast is recognizable from other movies, even if their names aren’t.

Ridiculous yet accurate dialogue

"If you people want to survive this, you better start looking and thinking like a forest."