Life After Dark isn’t a bad attempt at doing retro 1980s slasher but the idea is one thing, the execution is another. Outside of a couple scenes, the film is fairly standard and doesn’t offer very much in terms of story (even as limited as it is for the genre) or the kills which were rather mundane, though the gore effects themselves were semi impressive.
Life After Dark
(2015)
REVIEW NAVIGATION
The Movie | Special Features | Video Quality | Audio Quality | Overall
Genre(s): Horror
Anchor Bay | NR – 85 min. – $26.99 | September 1, 2015
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MOVIE INFO: Directed by: Ian Kessner Writer(s): Bo Ransdell & Ian Kessner (written by) Cast: Kendra Leigh Timmins, Jesse Camacho, Elise Gatien, Justin Kelly, Stephan James, Eve Harlow, Lanie McAuley, Alexander Calvert, David Lipper, Robert Patrick DISC INFO: Audio: English (Dolby TrueHD 5.1) |
** Click Here to Purchase Lost After Dark on Blu-ray from Amazon.com **
THE MOVIE – 2.5/5
The trend of retro horror continues this time on 1980s slasher films. Lost After Dark actually doesn’t do it half bad yet it’s a rather tedious and dull flick save for a few surprises here and there, though Robert Patrick hamming certainly helps things.
The story begins in 1976 Michigan where we meet our maniacal serial killer taking out his latest victim, the screaming sexy blonde whom he dispatches just after the title splashes on screen.
Fast forward to ‘84 as 17-year-old Adrienne (KENDRA LEIGH TIMMINS) is getting ready for the school dance though in fact she and her friends are ditching it for a weekend of rebellious fun at her family’s country vacation home. At school we’re introduced to the most certain victims for the killer: the friendly chubby bud Tobe (JESSE CAMACHO), best friend Jamie (ELISE GATIEN), token black guy Wesley (STEPHAN JAMES), gothy outcast chick Marilyn (EVE HARLOW), hot-for-trot couple Sean and Heather (JUSTIN KELLY, LAURIE MCAULEY) and Adrienne’s crush, Johnnie (ALEXANDER CALVERT).
Meanwhile, the school vice principal, Mr. C (ROBERT PATRICK) is a disciplinarian keen on finding the kids since they stole the school bus which, unfortunately for them, runs out of gas stranding them where they stumble upon the creepy house inhabited by the psychopathic serial killer (MARK WIEBE) who is none too pleased to have visitors. There, Adrienne discovers a medallion she had given her sister who had disappeared years earlier…
Quick Hit Review:
Lost After Dark purports to be an homage to 1980s slasher/horror and on that front it succeeds topped off with some post scratch marks and film disintegration. But outside of that, the movie really doesn’t have much to offer. Outside of a couple surprising scenes, the first kill in particular, it’s rather paint-by-numbers in its execution and features a rather bland and forgettable killer. On the plus side, the performances aren’t half bad and the gore effects were at least half decent.
This might be worth a rental otherwise it’s something that will air on a pay channel in the near future or heavily edited on SyFy.
SPECIAL FEATURES – 0/5
Unfortunately no features were included.
VIDEO – 4.5/5
Lost After Dark is shown with a 1.78 widescreen aspect ratio and a 1080p high-definition transfer (MPEG-4 AVC codec). It’s a bit hard to judge the quality as the filmmakers added some aging to the film in post with scratch marks and dust spots but outside of that, the detail level actually was pretty damn good, perhaps too good for a film which is supposed to look like it was from the ‘80s. The bulk of the film takes place in the dark and even those shots are stark and show no signs of aliasing, artifacts or pixilation.
AUDIO – 4.5/5
The film comes with a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track which shows off the many horrific and gruesome scenes which, if not careful, might attract the attention of neighbors as the blood-curdling screams resonate quite well over the 5 channels. Ambient noises, such as the surrounding woods or floorboard creaks in the house, make use of the rear speakers while the LFE channel does kick in for an extra boost.
OVERALL – 2.25/5
Overall, Life After Dark isn’t a bad attempt at doing retro 1980s slasher but the idea is one thing, the execution is another. Outside of a couple scenes, the film is fairly standard and doesn’t offer very much in terms of story (even as limited as it is for the genre) or the kills which were rather mundane, though the gore effects themselves were semi impressive. The Blu-ray released by Anchor Bay has no bonus material but the video/audio transfers were well done.
Published: 08/25/2015
Check out some more screen caps by going to page 2. Please note, these do contain spoilers.
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