Slasher

Rating:
Summary: The Slasher has a Deal for You!
Review: Michael Bennet (a.k.a. The Slasher) is a freelance auto salesman that travels the country to help dealerships clear out their lots of dead stock. This film follows Bennet to Memphis, TN where he arrives to help a local Toyota dealership clean out their inventory over a Memorial Day weekend (Thursday through Saturday).

Bennet is portrayed as a slick and very high-strung personality who cares about his family even though he feels as if he rarely sees them (he states that he sometimes feels like he is paying for storage space for his family rather than a home, since he is so often gone). On the job, he wears his tuxedo and walks the lot slashing prices (when he is "slashing" the price, the salespeople chant "Slash it, Slash it" per presale instructions from Bennet). With his wireless microphone, he is able to talk to the crowd (or empty lot) all day. Off the lot, he is portrayed as a heavy beer drinker and smoker. When not working, he often seems to have a beer in his hand and one (or two) cigarettes going. His wife calls him to ask him to drink orange juice for breakfast instead of beer (which is his usual breakfast beverage).

The film reveals the high-pressure used-auto sales environment and Bennet and his team show no mercy. They use the lure of door prizes, an $88 car, attractive female models, baselining, and a myriad of persuasion techniques to convince visitors to buy. His techniques are no doubt effective; however, he runs into trouble with completing the sale due to his prospects' credit ratings. At one point, a frustrated Bennet states, "they couldn't finance a piece of bubblegum with $200 down."

Although it portrays the very uncomfortable used-car sales process, this documentary is still quite comedic and overall has a lot of entertainment value. This documentary was made for the Independent Film Channel, where you may still be able to preview it before buying the DVD.