DVD Corner

Jessabelle Blu-ray Review

“Jessabelle” is a strangely mean spirited horror film.

After a car wreck claimed the lives of her unborn baby and boyfriend, a temporarily wheelchair bound Jessabelle heads home to Louisiana to live with her unstable father. Her homecoming is not a pleasant one, however, as Jessabelle begins to see and experience eerie things. The unpleasantness continue to pile on when she discovers old VHS tapes of her now deceased mother which begin to lead to some unexpected discoveries. With the help of her childhood friend Preston, Jessabelle hopes to unravel the mystery that is plaguing her life.

“Jessabelle” is the type of horror film in which the cover art is infinitely more enticing than the actual film. While Robert Ben Garant’s southern horror story about dark family secrets starts out promising enough, the overall tale is largely uneventful and oddly light on scares. Most of the screentime is merely comprised of the title character sitting in a wheelchair watching tapes. The most aggravating aspect of the script, however, is the fact that the character of Jessabelle is mercilessly punished from start to finish. If you think about it, absolutely nothing good ever happens to her in this movie. It’s a needlessly cruel creative decision on Ben Garant’s part.

On the subject of Jessabelle, up and coming actress Sarah Snook (who is also in the recently released sci-fi head trip “Predestination”) continues to impress here even if she is given very little to do. How she is not in more movies is beyond me.

Video/Audio:

Presentation: 1.78:1 1080p. How does it look? The lush North Carolina locals and atmospheric interior shots dazzle in hi-def.

Audio Track: 5.1 DTS-HD MA. How does it sound? Sufficient. There’s not too much going on here audio wise which is rare for a horror film.

Extras:
* Digital HD copy.
* Lionsgate trailers.
* 7 deleted scenes and an extended ending.
* 2 ½ minutes of amusing outtakes.
* “Jessabelle: Deep In the Bayou”- Your typical featurette with cast and crew interviews, set footage, film clips, discussions about the house featured in the film, etc.
* An enjoyable and laidback commentary by Kevin Greutert, Robert Ben Garant and Jerry Jacobs that delves into how the story came about, the production,  horror, set stories, and more.

January 17, 2015 - Posted by nicklyons1 | Blu-Ray review | Jessabelle Blu-ray Review, Sarah Snook