In
horror films, it is always open season on hunters. Technically, they can shoot
back, but that rarely makes much difference. Two semi-estranged brothers will
really make it ridiculously easy for the malevolent entity, hiking miles off
the beaten path to the shunned plateau no rational outdoorsmen has set foot on
since the disappearance of so-and-so. They basically deliver themselves into
the clutches of dread in Tim Brown’s Devil
in the Dark (trailer
here),
which releases today on DVD from Momentum Pictures.
One
dark and stormy night, six-year-old-ish Adam got lost in the woods. Eventually, his father found him, but ever
since that day, he has been a crybaby who hates the outdoors lifestyle—perhaps with
good reason. We soon suspect the strange evil thing in the woods somehow marked
him that night. Regardless, Clint becomes the perfect Eagle Scout son, while
Adam becomes an irresponsible dropout. On a rare visit home, Adam suggests a
camping trip as a way to mend his relationship with his brother, but Clint
turns it into a hunting expedition instead—with disastrous consequences.
From
the Biblically bickering brothers to the It in the woods, Devil closely follows a numbers of time honored genre traditions.
However, the quality of the productions pegs it a few notches above average.
Cinematographer Philip Lanyon conveys the cold, dark vastness of the mountains
with some stunning wide vista shots. Dan Payne is also all kinds of
salt-of-the-earth as Clint, the sporty brother, whereas Robin Dunne is totally
annoying as Adam, the squirrely one. Still, there are just about zero surprises
in store for anyone who watches at least a half dozen horror films over the
course of an average year. However, at least they have the sense to say “let’s
get out of here” when things really start getting messed up.