Don’t Turn Out the Lights: More RV Horror

It is one of the less publicized "rules" of horror movies: if you travel by RV, you are going to die. Such is the case in well-known films like Race with the Devil and 31, as well grubbier little nasties, such as The Toy Box. Consequently, seven sort-of friends driving to a music fest probably do not stand a chance in director-screenwriter Andy Fickman’s Don’t Turn Out the Lights, which releases tomorrow ion VOD.

To celebrate her birthday, “Queen Bee” Olivia arranged tickets to the Blue Lights music festival for her and her friends. Technically, they do not really know her boyfriend’s roommate, Jason, but as a relatively serious-minded Afghanistan veteran, he is the only really distinctive character. He is also the only one of them who probably does not deserve what is coming.

At a rest-stop, Jason rescues the girls from a couple of menacing truckers, but they subsequently chase the RV into a cellular/GPS dead zone. They are pretty sure they can navigate their way by map, or at least Jason can, until the RV breaks down. Suddenly, they are having disturbing visions and hearing threatening noises outside. Those who leave the RV suffer gruesome fates, only leaving behind strewn body parts. To make matters worse, they cannot trust their eyes inside, either.

Does illumination protect them from whatever might be preying on the RV-mates? Not that viewers can tell, which means the title is rather confusing. Regardless, Don’t Turn Out is surprisingly conventional, considering it comes from Fickman, who directed the stage musical spoofs Reefer Madness and Heathers: The Musical. There is little humor in the film and the musical connections (to the Blues Lights Festival) are purely tangential. Frankly, more creative thought went into the fake website for the fictional music fest than the film itself.

John Bucy plays the only interesting character and he nicely establishes the vet’s outsider status, while deftly hinting at the chip Jason maybe carries on his shoulder. The rest are mere stock figures, several of whom are also abrasively annoying.

Throughout the film, Fickman tries create ambiguity regarding the nature of the evil preying on the RV’ers, but he never establishes sufficient character or suspenseful tension for viewers to invest in the mystery. The results are too much like too many previous films. Not recommended, Don’t Turn Out the Lights releases tomorrow (9/6) on VOD.