DVD Corner

Trail Of Blood DVD Review

“Trail of Blood” brings nothing new to the slasher genre.

Presented by director Joe Dante (of “Gremlins” fame), “Trail of Blood” is a modern slasher film about 7 friends (3 couples) having a weekend camping trip that goes horribly awry. As you can probably predict, these 7 youngsters are not alone out in the wilderness as a killer (and his girlfriend accomplice) are lurking around the woods as well. Will any of the 7 innoncents make it out alive? Will the 2 wandering FBI agents be able to track down the killers before any more damage is done? You’ll have to tune in to see (or not).

As a longtime fan of the slasher genre, I’m always curious to see a new entry in the often dismissed horror film genre. Granted, most of the time slasher films are forgettable, but every once in awhile you will find a gem. Sadly, “Trail of Blood” is no gem. While the more grounded ‘Trail’ admirably tries to provide timely commentary on how violence warps people, that message is lost amidst slasher film clichés, a weak cast (save Robert Picardo), lousy editing, fake out scares, and generally poor production values. More than that, however, there’s simply nothing surprising or new here. Sure, you can make a case that the ending is different from the norm, but different doesn’t mean good. I didn’t buy the ending for a minute as it felt entirely forced. It’s only purpose was to drive home the already overdone message.

Video/Audio:

Presentation: 1.78:1. How does it look? This is a cheap looking slasher movie from a cinematography perspective. It doesn’t look awful, but it’s pretty bland looking to be sure.

Audio Track: Dolby Digital 5.1. How does it sound? This is a pretty mellow track which doesn’t come as too much of a surprise considering this is a low budget production.

Extras:
* Lionsgate trailers and a “Trail of Blood” trailer.
* Ultraviolet digital copy.
* A dull commentary by brothers/writers and directors Joseph and Justin Guerrieri. The two chat about location shooting, scenes, behind-the-scenes stories about filming, characters, etc.

Overall Thoughts: Unless you’re a horror fanatic who loves to buy every horror DVD ever released, skip “Trail of Blood.”

December 16, 2013 - Posted by nicklyons1 | DVD review | Joe Dante, Robert Picardo, Slasher Movie, Trail Of Blood DVD Review