Year: 1987
Runtime: 85 mins
Language: English
Director: Rick Roessler
Lester Bacon faces pressure from the town lawyer, the sheriff, and a rival slaughterhouse owner who wants his land. Determined to protect his property, he orders his massive, mentally unstable son to eliminate anyone who threatens them, sparking a violent, relentless showdown.
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In a rural farming town, an aging hog farmer named Lester Bacon [Don Barrett] lives with his simple-minded, obese son Buddy [Joe B. Barton], whose brutal impulses threaten to tear apart the fragile line between old world labor and a ruthless, modern system. Lester’s once-proud hog-farming methods have largely given way to cold, factory-type slaughterhouses, a shift that sets the stage for tragedy.
When Buddy violently murders two teenagers at Lovers Lane, Kevin Matthews [Joel Hoffman] and Michele [Courtney Lercara], the community teeters on the edge. The next day, Lester is visited by his attorney Harold Murdock and his law partner Tom Sanford [Bill Brinsfield], along with Sheriff Borden [William Houck], who arrives with a blunt offer: $55,000 to buy Lester’s property and the nearby slaughterhouse, a proposal Lester flatly rejects. Fred, the sheriff, warns that the assessor’s office is foreclosing on the farm and that Lester has 30 days to vacate, a deadline that intensifies the tension surrounding the Bacon clan.
Meanwhile, a group of high-schoolers—Skip, Buzz, Annie [Jane Higginson], and Liz—Sheriff Borden’s daughter, plan to shoot a horror video in and around the Bacon property, convinced the eerie site would be perfect for their project. Back at the Bacon place, Buddy returns with fresh brutality, showing Lester the dead bodies of Kevin and Michele and suggesting that Tom, Harold, and Fred might deserve a similar fate for crossing him and his father.
Deputy Dave Thomas heads to the slaughterhouse in search of the missing couple, and encounters a grisly scene: a dead hanging cat. Buddy steps in, killing him by severing his hand, then crushing Harold’s skull when Harold arrives. Buddy hijacks Dave’s squad car for a joyride, and later pursues Dave’s girlfriend Sally Duncan, who escapes. Buddy tracks her down, ultimately cutting her throat.
Tom Sanford arrives at the slaughterhouse, only to meet the same grim fate as Harold, when Buddy drops him into a meat grinder in a merciless showcase of his growing power. That night, Fred finds Dave’s abandoned car and calls for backup as the danger spirals outward.
Liz and the other teens arrive at the slaughterhouse, splitting up as Buddy methodically slays Skip, Annie [Jane Higginson], and Buzz [Jeff Grossi] in rapid succession. Liz discovers the severed remains of her friends, while Fred confronts the unsettling disappearances of Tom and Harold.
The terror culminates in a brutal confrontation where Buddy and Lester capture Liz and begin to torture her. When Fred arrives, Liz acts quickly, firing the weapon she inherits from her father to shoot Lester, then escaping with Fred in pursuit. Liz drives away as Buddy rises from the backseat, finishes off Fred, and lunges at Liz with a knife, the scene ending on Liz’s terrified scream as she fights to survive the nightmare she helped initiate.
Last Updated: October 07, 2025 at 20:33
Discover curated groups of movies connected by mood, themes, and story style. Browse collections built around emotion, atmosphere, and narrative focus to easily find films that match what you feel like watching right now.
Vicious horror stories where killers defend a violent, isolated way of life.If you liked the violent desperation of Slaughterhouse, explore more movies like it. This thread gathers similar horror stories where the terror is born from rural conflict, family-run brutality, and killers with a grim purpose, delivering a relentless and gritty viewing experience.
Stories in this thread typically follow a straightforward path of escalating violence, triggered by a threat to a character's property or way of life. A patriarch or family unit, often already unstable, decides to eliminate anyone who interferes, leading to a series of gruesome confrontations. The narrative is propelled by a sense of grim inevitability as the body count rises.
These movies are grouped by their shared foundation in rural horror, the motif of a killer with a specific, tangible goal (like protecting land), and a consistently dark, high-intensity tone. They evoke a similar feeling of being trapped in a hostile environment with few, if any, hopeful outcomes.
Unrelenting slasher films where the violence is constant and survival is unlikely.Fans of the relentless, high-body-count terror in Slaughterhouse will find more movies like it here. Discover similar slasher films known for their fast pacing, graphic violence, dark tone, and emotionally heavy, often hopeless conclusions that leave a lasting impact.
The narrative pattern is simple and effective: the threat is introduced quickly, and the killings begin almost immediately. The plot is a linear sequence of violent encounters with little subplot or complexity. The focus is on the visceral experience of the chase and the kill, building to a finale that reinforces the overwhelming power of the antagonist and the fragility of life.
Movies in this thread share a core experience: they are fast-paced, emotionally heavy, and prioritize brutal tension over mystery or suspense. They are united by a high intensity level, a dark tone, straightforward plots, and endings that feel sad or bleak, creating a coherent vibe of grim, unapologetic horror.
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Track the full timeline of Slaughterhouse with every major event arranged chronologically. Perfect for decoding non-linear storytelling, flashbacks, or parallel narratives with a clear scene-by-scene breakdown.
Discover the characters, locations, and core themes that shape Slaughterhouse. Get insights into symbolic elements, setting significance, and deeper narrative meaning — ideal for thematic analysis and movie breakdowns.
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