Plot: What’s it about?
A group of friends has a great weekend planned, one which involves camping, rafting, and of course, a whole lot of booze. The trek takes them to the rural town of Old Mines, a place where few outsiders even know is there. Old Mines isn’t a tourist trap in the least, in fact, the local residents hate to see visitors on the streets. As soon as the friends travel close to Old Mines, they are pulled over by a local police officer, who shakes them down and good. After a verbal assault and an unlawful search, the officer dumps out all the beer cans. He then warns the group to leave town at once, or else he will be back to cause more problems. Although it is obvious that no one wants them to be in Old Mines, the friends decide to continue with their rafting excursion, mostly out of spite for their poor treatment. This proves to be a bad choice, as the locals have a severe penchant for getting rid of intruders, no matter what it takes. In this case, a menace known as The Boy is set loose to chase down the visitors. This monster is seven feet tall, with a deformed physical presence that is hidden under sheets. The Boy has one purpose, to hunt down outsiders and demolish them, leaving behind only scattered remains. As The Boy closes in on the group, can any of the friends manage to survive this horrific onslaught?
I never miss a chance to see some insane rednecks, as I love movies like The Hills Have Eyes, Deliverance, and yes, even Wrong Turn. I guess I just have a weakness for inbred maniacs, the more gruesome and backwoods, the better. Which brings us to The Undertow, a movie that started out as a slapstick comic picture, but just before production began, the producers opted for a more serious tone. That sounds like a recipe for a haphazard movie, I know, but The Undertow is not just another lame low rent slasher. This movie has its roots in the 70s, which produced some of the sleaziest, most fun horror movies out there. You can tell the creative team behind The Undertow loves 70s horror cinema, as you can see the influence in almost every scene. This means a lot of lifts and homages, so don’t expect any new ground to be broken, but some new lifeblood is pumped in at times. The story is your basic “teens in rural hell” setup, but that’s all we need and the basics are well executed. The blood runs often and in liberal doses, so if you’re a fan of brutal violence and gore, The Undertow more than delivers. The lack of resources does cause some limitations, but all in all, this proves to be a competent, effective production. So if you’re a fan of backwoods horror, then you won’t want to miss The Undertow.
Video: How does it look?
The Undertow is presented in full frame, as intended. This film was shot on digital video, which means the image is very crisp and sharp, but has that certain look, so you won’t mistake this for traditional film based productions. Even so, this looks quite good for a low budget digital shoot, as the visuals are well framed and composed. The image suffers from some jagged edges and shimmering at times, but this is inherent to the source material, as almost all movies shot on less than cutting edge digital equipment have those flaws. The colors are vivid and bold, with no bleeds or smears, while black levels have a strong presence also. So not much else we could demand here, as the movie looks about as good as possible.
Audio: How does it sound?
I didn’t expect much in this department, which is a good thing, as the audio is as basic as can be. But this is a low budget horror movie, so sound design probably wasn’t the highest priority, in either attention or funds. So for what it is, the track sounds decent and never has that much of a “home movie” presence. Yes, you can tell that the audio wasn’t tweaked and refined, but this is not a bad audio treatment. The dialogue can be a tad soft at times, but is usually clear enough and the sound effects are well handled also. You have to forgive the basic design of the audio, but it works within the movie’s context, which is what matters. So don’t expect to be dazzled, but this is a more than passable presentation.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc includes some deleted scenes, a behind the scenes featurette, a reel of outtakes, still photos, and two of the film’s trailers. A nice selection of supplements to be sure, but I do wish a director’s commentary track were present.
