Wrong Turn on DVD

Getting lost in the woods is always scary, but it would be even more so if there was a group of homicidal maniacs chasing you.

Chris Flynn (Desmond Harrington) is on his way to Raleigh for a job interview when the highway gets backed up. Not wanting to be late, he finds an alternate route that leads him deep into the woods. He takes his eyes off the road for a second, and finds himself rear ending a jeep that is, for some reason, sitting in the middle of the road.

Sounds like our home town streets at rush hour...

It turns out that a group of teens have acquired a flat tire while en route to camping. After making sure everyone is okay, four of them set out to find a phone, while a pair stays behind in case anyone should come by.

The twosome is the first to fall victim to the evil lurking in the woods, and then the evil sights are turned on the remaining four.

It’s not quite a typical slasher movie, but it follows the typical slasher movie formula.

Where Wrong Turn fails is that it just isn’t all that scary. Where it succeeds is that it features some really cool gross-out deaths. Stan Winston Studio, Inc. handles the visual effects, and also the creature makeup, and they’re up to par with the studio’s past work. Winston also produces, which is a sign that, if nothing else, the movie is going to look good.

At a scant 82 minutes, no time is wasted getting into the story, and before you know it, the whole thing is over. Director Rob Schmidt does a good job of keeping things relatively suspenseful, while most of the cast does an excellent job as well. All, that is, except Harrington, who seems to be trying too hard to look and sound like an action hero. His monotone delivery is made worse by lines like “there must be people nearby,” spoken when the group stumbles upon a still lit campfire.

But for a fairly low-budget horror movie, it’s actually pretty enjoyable. There’s not much substance here, but that’s no different than most other horror movies.

The DVD features both widescreen and full screen transfers (on opposite sides of the disc – the way it should be), with a bunch of extras included as well (spread over both sides of the disc – the way it shouldn’t be).

Presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen, the picture is good, but it has a bit of a muddy look. Detail is still fairly visible, and the not-quite-perfect quality actually works well for a B horror movie like this.

The Dolby Digital 5.1 audio is very impressive. The surrounds are most effective when our protagonists are strolling through the woods, pursued by the bad guys. There are leaves rustling, branches cracking, and other typical forest noises surrounding you most of the time, while the main dialogue and score usually use strictly the front channels. During the more intense scenes, the rear speakers are much more active, with arrows and axes and truck engines filling the room.

Rob Schmidt, Desmond Harrington and Eliza Dushku provide an audio commentary, and the keyword is fun. They all had a good time making a fun little horror movie, and it comes across that way here. There isn’t a wealth of information to be learned, but it’s entertaining, and you can never argue with that. There are two deleted scenes, one of which is just an unnecessary extension, and four featurettes. The first, “The Making of Wrong Turn,” isn’t as fluffy as most, but isn’t nearly long enough to really tell you anything in-depth. “Eliza Dushku: Babe in the Woods” is four minutes of people telling us how much they love Eliza Dushku (not that we’d dare disagree). “Stan Winston” is another few minutes focusing on Stan Winston’s career, and “Fresh Meat: The Wounds of Wrong Turn” centers on a few of the more gruesome deaths.

Wrong Turn, from 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
82 minutes, anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) 16x9 enhanced, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
Starring Desmond Harrington, Eliza Dushku, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Jeremy Sisto
Produced by Robert Kulzer, Erik Feig, Stan Winston, Brian Gilbert
Written Alan McElroy
Directed by Rob Schmidt

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