I went into this movie cold, knowing little about it, and even less about the general opinion of the film. While I didn't think it was a great movie. I can say that I enjoyed it. I don't think it deserves any special praise for being a good movie. I had a good time watching it, and nothing annoyed the hell out of me. Which would make a good title for a coffee table review book.
Slaughterhouse Rulez is a movie about a young man who somehow makes his way into a high-end prep school for the wealthy, known as Slaughterhouse. Here he will learn the ways of upper education, which the film seems to think consists solely of learning Latin and the unsubtle art of bullying. It isn't long before we learn that the headmaster has made a deal with the company Terrafrack, to frack directly under school grounds for Shale gas. This is where the unsubtle environmental story comes in. I am not sure the people who made this movie know how fracking works, but since the mainstream view sees it as environmentally hazardous, then who needs details.
Sorry, I have gotten off-topic. When Terrafrack fracks directly under the school, they release an evil group of subterranean monsters who come up to eat everything they can. The kids and everyone else in the area must find a way to survive or be eaten by creatures from the depths. Which, as we all know, is the actual danger of fracking.
I think what Slaughterhouse Rulez lacks to make it great is depth. There is a fun link between the past of the school's founding and the monsters. Sadly, we only get snippets of this past, through a story the new kids are supposed to memorize. Most of the run time is instead spent with regular stories about privilege, classism, bullying. While all things worth speaking out against, here they take up way too much time, leaving the movie feeling like a drama. I am not saying the action needed to start ASAP, just that I felt like they needed to add more of the lore and backstory of the school. This legend needed depth, something more to make you wonder if the past stories were real. Other than that, Slaughterhouse Rulez is a teen drama that ends in a monster attack.
The effects were decent, for the most part. The monster themselves looked okay and weren't overused in their mole slug-like shape. Other than some shoddy fire effects and the right awful looking fracking tower, everything else gets a pass. Same with the acting. There are some good actors in this, ones whom I have enjoyed in most everything they are in. Simon Pegg, Michael Sheen, Nick Frost, all have fun parts, and there are even a few scenes with Margot Robbie. But they all play small roles, and come and go quickly. The younger actors end up doing most of the heavy lifting, and the whole thing still manages to stay away from being terrible.
In the end, I think Slaughterhouse Rulez is worth is a fun romp that is worth at least one view. Good performances, goofy story, and a quicker pace when it gets going help propel it above mediocre. So, while it may be a bit lengthy, Slaughterhouse Rulez never offends too much, nor gets too preachy to outweigh its welcome.