Film Review: Trick 'r Treat
Patrick Riley
Issue date: 10/13/09 Section: Arts & Life
Trick 'r Treat is the work of a born filmmaker, a sumptuous and consistently enthralling work of art that lingers in your mind for days and weeks after you see it.
And yet, for some reason, the movie has been denied a theatrical release by the people at Warner Bros. studio. It was originally sceheduled to hit the big screens two years ago, but got shelved because…well, I honestly don't know.
Were the studio executives really afraid of the competition? Did they honestly think that an original Halloween movie released in October was really going to lose financially to the umpteenth Saw movie or the latest Asian horror movie remake?
It's hard to fathom just why Warner Bros., the same company that released such gems like Battlefield Earth, The Adventures of Pluto Nash, and Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever over the years, was so scared to release this movie, especially considering that the few people who did manage to see this movie have had nothing but positive things to say about it.
It doesn't matter now. Trick 'r Treat is now available on DVD, and it is easily the creepiest, funniest, most original genre film that I've seen in years.
The movie marks the directorial debut of Michael Dougherty, who was born just a few days shy of October the 31st and is positively in love with the season.
His love for All Hallows Eve is evident in every frame of the movie, as Dougherty gives the proceedings a rich and enchanting autumnal visual polish and instills a gleefully macarbe vibe that is reminiscent of the EC Comics of yore.
He also uses a number of old school visual tricks that serve the movie well. There is not one single use of CGI in the movie, and surprisingly enough, not one visual effect shot that looks fake. There is a werewolf transformation scene late in the movie so frighteningly realistic that it alone makes the movie worth seeing.
Trick 'r Treat takes place over the course of one Halloween night, in a small Ohio town that is practically obsessed with the season.
And yet, for some reason, the movie has been denied a theatrical release by the people at Warner Bros. studio. It was originally sceheduled to hit the big screens two years ago, but got shelved because…well, I honestly don't know.
Were the studio executives really afraid of the competition? Did they honestly think that an original Halloween movie released in October was really going to lose financially to the umpteenth Saw movie or the latest Asian horror movie remake?
It's hard to fathom just why Warner Bros., the same company that released such gems like Battlefield Earth, The Adventures of Pluto Nash, and Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever over the years, was so scared to release this movie, especially considering that the few people who did manage to see this movie have had nothing but positive things to say about it.
It doesn't matter now. Trick 'r Treat is now available on DVD, and it is easily the creepiest, funniest, most original genre film that I've seen in years.
The movie marks the directorial debut of Michael Dougherty, who was born just a few days shy of October the 31st and is positively in love with the season.
His love for All Hallows Eve is evident in every frame of the movie, as Dougherty gives the proceedings a rich and enchanting autumnal visual polish and instills a gleefully macarbe vibe that is reminiscent of the EC Comics of yore.
He also uses a number of old school visual tricks that serve the movie well. There is not one single use of CGI in the movie, and surprisingly enough, not one visual effect shot that looks fake. There is a werewolf transformation scene late in the movie so frighteningly realistic that it alone makes the movie worth seeing.
Trick 'r Treat takes place over the course of one Halloween night, in a small Ohio town that is practically obsessed with the season.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
no plagiarism essay
posted 1/11/10 @ 4:12 PM EST
I think that this mivie is worth seeing.
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