This review contains some spoilers.

We have another masked stalker looking to slip into the demented ranks of such iconic killers as Leatherface and Jason Voorhees.

He's Babyface. Clad in a nasty bright red jacket, a necklace of baby rattles and sporting a creepy infant mask, Babyface is a visually arresting villain with the chops to shake up the genre. But is the film birthing him just as tantalizing?

"If you hear his rattle, it's already too late," warns the slogan of a lost 80's slasher film that Tyler (Tad Hilgenbrink) and his friends hope to locate. It was immediately pulled from theaters for its insanely disturbing content, and subsequently the director, cast and film reels disappeared. Tyler, a cinema buff, sees an opportunity to make a documentary on the infamous flick and perhaps watch it if a print survived.

His investigation quickly leads to the director's stripper daughter Alexa (Sophie Monk), who had a small part in the film when she was a child. Tyler convinces her to take them deep into the woodlands where the film was lensed and to lead them to her father's house where a print may still exist.

However, this being your classic slasher setup, not much goes as planned and a bloodbath ensues. To say more would spoil too much.

What Worked

Babyface is the film's strength. He has the looks. He has the remote hunting ground that many of the genre's best killers enjoy. And he has a downright sick and brutal disposition.

His origin, spotlighted in a brief sequence during the opening credits is an effective, bloody and creepy moment. Later, he even speaks, surprisingly delivering his line in a voice that belies his monstrous appearance. Nice moment.

Another interesting scene involves the characters discussing the folly that most people exhibit during slasher films: characters fail to bring a gun, their flashlights fail them and their cell phone reception is nonexistent. Amusingly, these classic mishaps all fail to materialize in this film, but that fact still leads to disaster.

Babyface makes particularly good use of one character's gun, leaving the scene with a distinct "Indiana Jones" vibe.

Wilson Wyler Concannon's (William Sadler) lost film is an intriguing concept -- a flick so disturbing that it was abruptly pulled from theaters. Concannon's promotional trailer is certainly cool; it features a surge of blood flooding down a hill while a hand emerges from the ground. Classic!

The idea of such an infamous film also appeared in John Carpenter's "Master Of Horror" episode "Cigarette Burns," which was an equally interesting take on the concept. You almost wish that these films were real and part of the DVD extras.

If such a movie existed, it would be a fantatic investigation to undertake. But sadly, it's doubtful anyone could actually capture such a scary and intense experience on film. If they did, I imagine I would be off stumbling through some spooky woods with my hapless documentary team too.

Lastly, "The Hills Run Red" concludes on an open-ended note. That's refreshing. Too many slasher films see the need to kill off everyone by the last frame, leaving the inevitable sequel with little wiggle room.

What Didn't Work

There are the foundations of a very good slasher flick lurking here, yet it fails to maintain a sharp edge at several points.

Unfortunately, what follows Babyface's introduction during the opening credits is a dimensioned sense of tension and atmosphere. Some scenes were too well lit for my taste. Even the carnage seemed oddly restrained in places. And when an attack did occur it often lacked innovative kills and a kinetic zip.

You can tell numerous bloody scenes were axed too. In fact, the "It's Not Real Until You Shoot It: Making The Hills Run Red" documentary on the DVD gives an interesting peak into what is missing. Much of it looks spectacularly gruesome -- you know, the type of material that horror fans salivate over but studios can't seem to come to terms with.

For a direct-to-DVD film, the "The Hills Run Red's" R rating is a mindblower. What the hell! Usually you cut material for theatrical releases to avoid the dreaded NC-17 rating (an asinine censorship tool of the MPAA). With no such concern going straight to DVD, I can only speculate the cuts were made to appease your friendly neighborhood Walmart and Blockbuster. What a nauseating possibility! (UPDATE: See my exclusive interview with director Dave Parker, executive producer Robert Meyer Burnett and Monk that addresses the reasoning behind the R rating.)

It reminds me of a similar film's near debilitating castration: 1990's "Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III," which was also penned by the "The Hills Run Red's" writer David J. Schow.

Regardless, "The Hills Run Red's" cuts are wince inducing. Could a PG-13 version not be far behind?

I also found one scene involving a character forced into a speedy detox hard to digest. Can you really recover that quickly? Though I imagine it's possible that the drug addiction was simply a ruse. If so, count me satisfied.

Overall, it was still an entertaining ride. It's a low budget film often reflective of an 80's slasher, with the expected traits: nutty rednecks, a deranged family, an isolated gas station, generous nudity and even the occasional flat acting performance. You can already hear screams from the impending sequel.

Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due

"The Hills Run Red" was directed by Dave Parker ("The Dead Hate the Living!"). It's based on a story by John Carchietta and was written by John Dombrow and David J. Schow ("The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning," "The Crow"). Warner Premiere is offering the film on DVD, On Demand and by digital download, Tuesday.