Love is a battlefield in British comedy slasher Double Date

British comedy horror is a bit of a dicey prospect at the best of times. For every “Shaun Of The Dead” there are a dozen “Lesbian Vampire Slayers”, so when “Double Date” popped up on the old Sky Q box, I was wary but willing.

Jim (Danny Morgan) is about to turn thirty and his best friend Alex (Michael Socha) is determined to help him lose his virginity before the big 3-0. The lads think they’ve hit the jackpot when they meet sisters Kitty (Kelly Wenham) and Lulu (Georgia Groome), who seem up for anything. But Kitty and Lulu have a secret; Jim and Alex aren’t the only ones on the hunt, the girls are too and Jim’s virginity is the prize they seek, but for a much grislier purpose than the boys would believe.

From the opening credits, this feels more polished than your average British ‘comedy horror’ outing. Director Benjamin Barfoot and star/ writer Danny Morgan have conspired to concoct a stylish, sexy and hilariously relatable parable on the dangers of dating. It opens with Kitty and Lulu luring their latest victims back to their house with the promise of sex, drugs and booze only for Kitty to kill them both in a frenzied kitchen knife attack.

This sets the tone nicely for the film which walks the tightrope between visceral horror and knockabout comedy with considerable ease. Morgan and the ever dependable Socha (of “Being Human”) are a terrific odd couple pairing as super-shy and sweet Jim and swaggering, overconfident idiot Alex and their friendship feels instantly authentic thanks to the chemistry between the pair. That chemistry is extended to the predatory femme fatales and it’s nice to watch the sweet if doomed hesitant romance blossom between Lulu and Jim while Alex’s cocky and boneheaded approach has Kitty trying to decide whether he’s enough of a pain to kill right now.

Across the space of Jim’s birthday night out, the movie gleefully jumps from awkward comedy of manners to slasher movie to psychological horrors and still has the energy to feature one of the best comedy horror fight scenes this side of “The Evil Dead”.

A breezy, bloody, laugh out loud 90-minute romp, “Double Date” is the perfect Friday Night post-pub movie for you, your mates and whoever you may have hit it off with during the evening – just make sure you’ve hidden all the kitchen knives.