Savage Harvest (1994)

Determined to atone for the suffering brought upon his people during the Trail of Tears, a Cherokee elder engaged in dark magic to summon an ancient demon entity known as Retlawkoob. When the tribe awoke to find their bountiful harvest turned into rows of useless stone, they buried the elder in the fields beneath a pile of the cursed rocks; each of which bore the mark of a different bestial demon. After a flood causes the stones to resurface, six teenagers camping on the burial site unsuspectingly unleash the demonic forces. Possession consumes one camper after another, transforming them into animalistic, frenzied killing machines, voraciously feeding on the warm meat of their freshly deceased victims. As the body count grows, only the timid Mikki is left to unlock the riddles left behind by the elders and do battle with the vengeful demon Retlawkoob. Now, only bloodshed, violence, and terror grow in these darkened fields...and tonight the harvest begins.St. Louis, Missouri based writer / director Eric Stanze (The Scare Game, Scrapbook, Ratline) made major waves in the underground with this ambitious, Native American themed, Evil Dead-style demonic possession romp filmed against the backdrop of the Great Flood of 1993; a real life debilatating disaster that devastated parts of the American Midwest. Elaborate practical effects, extreme chainsaw violence, a memorable monster, and some genuine atmospheric scares helped put Savage Harvest on the map and cemented Stanze's status as one of the most consistent and visionary auteurs working in the shot on video horror medium.