Dir: Rod Blackhurst, US, 2025, 82 mins

Cast: Fabianne Therese, Seann William Scott, Max The Impaler

Review by: Matthew Morlai Kamara

The story of Blackhurst’s horror flick follows Macy (Fabianne Therese), a young woman who is abducted in mysterious woods and shoved into a claustrophobic nightmare by a grotesque, twisted, monster-like figure. Trapped in a rotting, secluded sanctuary, can Macy survive this relentless psychological onslaught?

“In a dark, dark wood, there’s a dark, dark house” Remember that? Rod Blackhurst has taken this innocent but slightly scary children’s book that many of us read in our childhood and transformed it into a blood-soaked nightmare horror, which left me absolutely reeling. It’s proper, stomach-churning stuff that doesn’t just make you feel uncomfortable in your seat but hypnotizes you, particularly during a horrific scene involving a rusty shovel. Sorry that may be a small spoiler!

To be brutally honest: I found this film completely disturbing and I mean that as a massive compliment. Dolly is a film with a horrific amount of violence that feels like a throwback to those classic hardcore, gruesome 80s horror flicks we used to watch with trembling fingers.

It’s a lethal cocktail of Friday the 13th slasher brutality mixed with the sweat-soaked grime of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. It’s raw, it’s filthy, and it’s unapologetically cruel. There were moments where I genuinely had to cover my face, as I just couldn’t handle the sheer nastiness on screen at certain moments of the film. This film is definitely nail-biting!

When it comes to the casting. I had to do a massive double-check. Is that… Stifler as in the American Pie franchise? Yes, it is! I was genuinely stunned to see Seann William Scott pop up. Without giving away any spoilers, he only makes a few appearances, but his performance was genuinely good. It is totally different from his funny “Stifler” character, having completely shed that comedic skin for something far more grounded in this one.

The absolute highlight performance of the film however is the twisted killer, “Dolly”, played by pro wrestler Max The Impaler. She wears a cracked porcelain girl’s mask and a dress. And her character is fuelled by a warped, terrifying maternal instinct. That unsettling presence is enough to give you nightmares.

If you’ve got a weak stomach or suffer from hypertension, consider this your official warning. Prepare to gasp or even shed a tear and make sure you purchase a bucket of popcorn to hide behind. Dolly doesn’t just want to jump-scare you, it wants to violate your entire sense of safety. It’s a high-octane film proving that the old-school horror style is still alive and kicking.