Dead Wood

Introduction

Four friends, two couples, head for a weekend camping in the country. Webb and his girlfriend Larri are one half of the group, with Larri's cousin Milk and his friend Jess sharing the other tent. Arriving in the forest, they are immediately concerned when they find the rusted wreck of a van very much like the one they came in and things don't get much better when they wake up after the first night in the woods to find a young woman, Ketsy, frying some bacon and talking about her missing boyfriend.

As the hours go by, members of the group start disappearing and they know there is something out there in the woods that doesn't want them there.

This was clearly a small production, written, directed, edited and photographed by the trio of David Bryant, Sebastian Smith and Richard Stiles and with a cast of only eight, including David Bryant!

Video

Dead Wood is well shot, using the trees and the canopy they provide to show how lost you can get in the woods and there are some gorgeous shots of the scenery. The transfer isn't as sharp as it could've been, with some grain and lack of definition throughout.

Audio

An effective Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack with clear dialogue and subtle use of the surrounds - it's amazing how much a cracking twig can be if placed correctly! The sound design is clearly influenced by The Blair Witch Project, with cracking sticks and banging rocks from out in the darkness.

Extra Features

Given how much creative control Bryant, Smith and Stiles had, you'd have thought they might like to talk about the film, but all you get is a trailer.

Conclusion

Dead Wood is virtually a cross between The Evil Dead and The Blair Witch Project: friends go to stay in the woods, something (or someone) means them ill and their numbers dwindle after some bickering and infighting.

This is not to say that because it is unoriginal means it's bad, it's the horrible stilted acting and clichéd dialogue that is the film's downfall. There must be a joke about wooden acting in the forest ('I couldn't see the wood for the trees'?) but I wouldn't stoop that low, or have I just done exactly that?  Some of the lines (and the way they were delivered) had me cringing and laughing in equal measure and when a film starts this way, it takes something special to get you back where the director(s) want you. Unfortunately for Dead Wood, it doesn't have something special and the reveal owes a lot to J-horrors.

I was just remarkably uninvolved in the film and didn't find it scary, atmospheric or emotive. There are glimpses of skill from the three filmmakers but it just wasn't enough to keep my eyes glued to the screen for the running time.