For those of you who like their horror brutal and nightmarish, here's one for you. A seedy no-tell motel harboring dark secrets is the setting. A masked slasher with a really big knife. Guests who need atonement. You ever notice in these films that atonement is always given in gory fashion? Our feature today is "He Never Left," directed by James Morris.
Gabe (Colin Cunningham) is on the run. A three-time loser, at least, has the US Marshals after him. He's wanted for murdering a 17-year-old boy. Gaben in a piece of work...he himself is a cold blooded killer with a short fuse. He needs help and the only soft-heart he can find is a former GF, the pretty redhead Carly (Jessica Staples)...she is also a piece of work, you'll see. She smuggles him into a room at the Skyline Motel run by Bryce (David E. McMahon). He's too creepy and has a tendency to care too much about his guests. Carly secures Gabe in the room and goes off to get food. Gabe needs to keep quiet and not turn the lights on. Uh oh. As Gabe keeps quiet he hears the women in the room next door being brutally murdered. Like, what is he going to do...call the cops?
Carly comes back and finds Gabe in a panic. When she finds out that Gabe did not help a woman being attacked, she leaves him high and dry. She is done with Gabe for good now! Leaving Gabe to his own devices, Carly goes back to her putrid life but the Skyline Hotel is kind of like the Hotel California. The real horror is about to follow Carly home. Gabe? Yep...the sins of his past will be addressed as the ghost of his 17-year-old victim beckons. Who else beckons? Pale Face (William McAllister), a killer who left the scene nearly 20 years ago who was responsible for lots of murders. he's back and seems to have free reign of the motel.
There is a lot more but the last 40 minutes of this film, if described here, would give too much away. Fear not, the blood will flow freely, many will die horribly, and the secret of the Skyline Motel will be revealed. Don't get too close to anyone in this film...they are all terribly flawed. For a great masked slasher film, see "He Never Left."