The Burning 1981

As night descends upon Camp Blackfoot, a group of five boy campers concoct a sinister plan to unsettle their caretaker, Cropsy (Lou David). With a box in hand, they sneak into his cabin, the air thick with anticipation. One camper ventures inside, carefully placing the box down before lighting a flame and exiting. The others gather outside, pounding on the window until Cropsy is jolted awake. His eyes widen in horror as he takes in the gruesome sight of a worm-covered skull aglow with candles in its eye sockets. The caretaker’s terrified shriek is drowned out by the sound of shattering glass and crackling flames as the nearby gasoline can explodes, engulfing the cabin in a fiery inferno. Cropsy stumbles out, his body ablaze, and tumbles down a small slope into the lake.

Seven days later, at St. Catherine’s hospital, an orderly escorts a meek intern to visit a patient whose charred remains seem almost miraculous given their survival. As the orderly stands watch by the oxygen tent’s curtain, Cropsy’s emaciated hand seizes his arm in a cold, calculated grasp, sending the orderly into a paroxysm of terror.

Five years pass, and Cropsy is finally released from the hospital, his disfigured face a testament to the brutal inferno that consumed him. By night, he stalks the streets, clad in black attire with a hat, careful to remain shrouded in shadows lest anyone catch sight of his ravaged visage. A prostitute, standing at the entrance to a dilapidated apartment building, offers Cropsy entry into her lair. He enters the dimly lit room, his caution evident as he extinguishes the lights before proceeding. As the hooker prepares for their encounter, Cropsy closes in, his gruesome appearance sending her into a frenzy of fear. In a desperate bid to escape, she pleads with him to leave, but it’s too late. With scissors in hand, Cropsy exacts a deadly revenge upon the prostitute.

Days later, at Camp Stonewater, a group of campers engage in a spirited game of baseball, oblivious to the fact that Cropsy lurks mere feet away, armed with pruning shears. Though he watches them with an unblinking gaze, he refrains from intervening. That evening, in the cafeteria, camper Karen (Carolyn Houlihan) confides in counselor Michelle (Leah Ayres) about her growing infatuation with Eddy, tempered by a healthy dose of fear due to his rugged demeanor.

As dawn breaks on another idyllic summer day, Sally (Carrick Glenn) stirs from her slumber, only to find herself face-to-face with an unsettling reality. While indulging in a morning shower, she is startled by an unknown presence and erupts into a frantic cry of “Who’s there?” Her shrill shriek sends ripples of panic through the cabin, as Michelle, Karen, and their fellow campers rush to her aid. The scene unfolds with Alfred (Brian Backer) fleeing in terror, pursued by the frantic girls. Counselor Todd (Brian Matthews) intervenes, apprehending the would-be prankster and leading him into a stern lecture in his office. Alfred’s confession reveals a desire to scare Sally, motivated by the cruel treatment he has endured at the hands of others. Todd empathizes with Alfred’s plight, drawing parallels from his own experiences five years prior as a camper at a neighboring summer camp. A botched prank had led to him and several friends being sent home in shame.

Later, as the campers bask in the warm sunlight by the lake, Glazer (Larry Joshua), Sally’s rough-around-the-edges boyfriend, issues a warning to Alfred: stay away from his girlfriend. But tensions simmer just below the surface. When Glazer pushes Alfred off the dock and into the water, one of Alfred’s friends, Dave (Jason Alexander), springs into action, diving in to save their struggling companion. As Alfred recovers, a sense of camaraderie develops among Dave, Woodstock (Fisher Stevens), Eddy (Ned Eisenberg), and Fish (J.R. McKechnie) as they concoct a plan for revenge against Glazer.

That evening, Cropsy lurks in the shadows, observing the campers with an unnerving intensity. Alfred’s instincts prove correct, but his friends remain oblivious to their stalker’s presence. Meanwhile, Glazer requests Fish to procure some prophylactics from him, as Dave and Woodstock engage in a game of cards. The atmosphere remains charged, awaiting the announcement by the head counselor that a three-day canoe trip down Devil’s Creek is imminent, promising an adventure that will test the mettle of these summer campers.

The following morning, a diverse group of campers embarked on a serene canoeing adventure. As night descended, they gathered around a roaring campfire, their faces aglow with the warmth of Todd’s (insert actor name) eerie tale about Cropsy, the woods’ reclusive caretaker. His words painted a vivid picture of a man consumed by madness and forced to subsist on the raw flesh of the forest’s creatures. The campers were left with a sense of unease as Eddy suddenly emerged from the shadows, his mask a chilling reminder that even in the most idyllic settings, terror can lurk. Later, under the soft glow of a nearby lake, Eddy and Karen shared a tender moment, their passion ignited by the peaceful surroundings. However, their intimacy was short-lived, as Eddy’s true intentions began to unravel, leaving Karen feeling uncertain and ultimately fleeing back to the darkness.

As the sun rose over the campsite, Todd and Michelle inquired about Karen’s whereabouts, only to be met with Eddy’s disconcerting claim of ignorance. The group soon discovered that all their canoes had vanished, prompting Todd to propose an unconventional solution: constructing a makeshift raft to guide them back to camp. As they worked together to gather materials and construct the raft, Glazer found himself drawn to Sally, while Alfred watched with a mixture of fascination and revulsion.

As Eddy, Woodstock, Fish, Marnie (Bonnie Deroski), and Rhoda (Ame Segull) pushed off into the river, their journey seemed tranquil enough. However, as they paddled upstream, their peaceful surroundings gave way to a sense of foreboding. The appearance of one of their canoes on the horizon proved to be a harbinger of doom. Cropsy, lurking in wait, sprang forth from the canoe’s depths, unleashing a maelstrom of violence and carnage upon the unsuspecting campers. In mere seconds, the raft was transformed into a bloody abattoir, as Eddy and his companions met their gruesome demise at the hands of the unhinged caretaker.

As night descends, Todd and his companions remain oblivious to the gruesome events unfolding elsewhere, their hopes pinned on the arrival of help. Meanwhile, Glazer and Sally venture into the depths of the woods, seeking solace in each other’s arms. Despite the fleeting nature of their intimacy, they decide to prolong the moment, unaware that their idyllic escapade is soon to be shattered. As Glazer departs to retrieve matches to kindle a fire, Sally finds herself at the mercy of Cropsy, who strikes with brutal ferocity. Glazer’s return to the sleeping bag is met with a horrifying discovery: Sally lies dead, and his own life force ebbs away as Cropsy impales him upon a tree with the gruesome shears. The campsite erupts into chaos as Alfred stumbles forth from his slumbering bag, only to behold the carnage. Todd reluctantly follows Alfred back to the site, where they find Glazer’s lifeless body and Sally’s mutilated remains. Cropsy emerges from the shadows, his presence marked by a swipe of the shears that leaves Todd with a gash on his forehead. Panicked, Alfred flees into the woods, pursued by the relentless Cropsy. As the darkness deepens, Todd awakens to find himself alone and disoriented, stumbling off into the treacherous woods.

The next day dawns, bringing with it the ghastly sight of the raft drifting downstream, its cargo a testament to the brutal fate that befell the campers. Michelle swims out to claim her gruesome discovery: the mangled remains of Woodstock, and Todd returns to the campsite, his countenance etched with anguish. With an air of resignation, he implores the six remaining campers – Barbara, Tiger, Sophie, Diane, Alan, and Dave – to row back to Camp Stonewater and summon aid while he sets out to find Alfred, whose survival hangs precariously in the balance. Armed with a felling ax, Todd ventures into the woods, his determination fueled by a desperate hope to find his friend alive.

As panic grips the campsite, Michelle urges the supervisor, Jeff, to launch a rescue mission for Todd and Alfred, still missing in the treacherous wilderness. With a sense of urgency, Jeff and Michelle set off in a motorboat, their destination Devil’s Creek, where they may yet find Todd and Alfred, or perhaps uncover the dark secrets that lurk beneath the surface.

As the darkness deepens, Alfred’s cries for help pierce the air, drawing Todd to the old copper mine. The sound of screams grows louder, and with a sense of trepidation, Todd ventures into the abandoned structure, only to find his friend bound and gagged by Cropsy. The deranged killer’s gruesome visage, scarred from years of torment, is finally revealed as he wields an ancient blowtorch, its flame modified to resemble a crude flamethrower. A flashback unfolds, showcasing Todd as one of the five campers responsible for the prank that sparked Cropsy’s descent into madness.

Todd’s approach triggers Cropsy’s attention, and the two engage in a macabre dance. As Cropsy swings his blowtorch, Todd dodges and weaves, searching for an opening to strike back. Meanwhile, Alfred manages to free himself and seizes the opportunity to exact revenge, plunging the garden shears deep into Cropsy’s back.

The campers’ frantic arrival at the site is punctuated by the sound of police helicopters overhead. As Michelle waves down the chopper, Jeff assists in summoning a team of officers who rush into the woods to apprehend the perpetrators. Back at the mine, Todd and Alfred finally escape the treacherous tunnels, only to be confronted once more by Cropsy’s reanimated form. In a gruesome climax, Todd delivers a crushing blow with his ax, pinning Cropsy to a support pillar before Alfred sets the killer ablaze.

As the flames engulf the lifeless body, Todd and Alfred emerge from the mine, their ordeal finally at an end. The legend of Cropsy, however, lives on, passed down through campfire tales, forever etched in the collective consciousness of those who dare to venture into the woods.