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Released by: Vivendi Entertainment
Released on: 8/2/2011
Director: Andy Mitton and Jesse Holland
Cast: Cassidy Freeman, Anessa Ramsey, Lee Wilkof, Clark Freeman, Michael Laurino
Year: 2010
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The Movie:
Back in 1940, the entire population of a small town in New Hampshire collectively walked up a path into the woods and that was the end of them. They all died, the legend grew, and the story became one of great mystery. A group of people decided it would be a good thing to try and figure out what happened that fateful day, so they return to Friar, NH, a fictitious town up near the Canadian border.
They find a young woman working at the little movie theater in town and she helps them find the trail, which their GPS can't seem to locate. In fact the GPS says they're in Guam, so that's pretty useless. Something is not right in the area, and the adventurers will soon find out that NOTHING is right up in those woods, including the mysterious music they keep hearing. After being lost for days in the forest, they start to lose their sanity and turn on one another. The only chance they have is finding their way back to civilization, but the woods don't seem to want to let them escape.
This one is a slow moving picture, looking to focus more on the psychological side of horror rather than the visceral side, and it does a pretty good job. Its quite atmospheric once they get into the Great North Woods and the sense of isolation added to the fact that their location equipment isn't functioning really brings out the feeling of being lost in an endless sea of trees. Those who have experienced being lost in the woods will be able to relate how that feels. Those who should be able to feel the helplessness of it, as portrayed so well in the film. Doubtless that this will draw Blair Witch Project comparisons, but this movie does a better job of creating that mood. And the film delivers some genuinely creepy moments, and the music the woods seem to be playing is quite haunting. The movie goes for a bit of a twist, but ending is kind of weak. The time it takes to get there should have resulted in a bigger wallop. Overall, though, the directors do a good job with their story, making it more character driven then balls-out special effects.
Good performances from most of the cast, although the accents the “locals†have sounds more like Massachusetts then northern New England (yes, there is a difference). The photography is nice and the movie was shot well, so if the story isn't working for you maybe the scenery will. If you like slow-burn horror this might suit your fancy. But people looking for the woods to rape people and monsters to eviscerate fornicating teens, look elsewhere.
YellowBrickRoad (no spaces) was filmed in northern New Hampshire in the towns of Lancaster and Pittsburgh, the latter of which borders Canada. Anyone who's ever been to the area knows its beauty and also its seclusion, and the film really showcases both elements nicely. It also captures the absolute misery of being out in those woods when it's raining and buggy. Camping in that shit just sucks.
Video/Audio/Extras:
The disc presents a very nice picture and as mentioned showcases the beauty of the area. The colors standout (although a lot of it is green), the skin tones are right, and the black levels are satisfying. The disc has an aspect ratio of 1.78:1. The audio is a 5.1 Dolby Digital track and they make good use of the rear speakers during the scenes where the ghostly music is playing. A lot of sound comes from the front though, as it's heavy on the talking. No authoring issues seem present.
The only extra is a commentary by the directors, and they manage to keep the talk going throughout the picture. Its pretty standard stuff, talking about the locations, the actors, problem spots such as getting thrown out of a location. They also talk about their favorite horror movies and obviously have a love for the genre. It's a good track and worth a listen if you have an interest in the feature. Some form of behind the scenes would have been a bonus, but oh well.
The Final Word:
Nothing to knock you off your seat in this one, but it does do what a lot of horror movies don't even bother trying to do these days, and that's create scares through tension and atmosphere, rather than loud noises and fast editing. Hats off to these guys for that.
