Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		2.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.0

A Horrible Way to Die Blu-ray Movie Review

A dreary, depressing picture about lives of violence.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman September 7, 2011

If you were going to die, and you knew you were going to die, and you could choose how...what would you choose?

Drowning in a secret underwater research facility? Melted away by toxic waste and splattered into a million pieces by a fast-moving car? Falling from a fortieth-floor window? Those are some bad ways to go out, but this, this is a horrible way to die. It even has a movie named after it, called A Horrible Way to Die. Some title. But it's not really pretentious. It's not the most horrible way to die, but rather one of many. So it's average. Very average in terms of the list of "horrible ways to die." From the get-go, it's implying nothing special. It'll be a garden-variety, run-of-the-mill, yawn-inducing way to die. Or not. So what is this "horrible way to die?" Is it being slowly digested over the course of a thousand years? An alien bursting out of some poor schmuck's stomach? Or is it eating oneself to death? That's for the movie to tell, but here's a hint: alcohol is bad, and killer boyfriends escaped from prison with a thirst for more blood are doubly bad. Add in some really gruesome dismemberment -- that's only tertiary to the plot and only briefly seen -- and yes, that's a bad combination, definitely a horrible way to die, and a great way to spend 90 minutes of movie watching time.

That hook doesn't look too promising.

Sarah (Amy Seimetz) is a middle-aged recovering alcoholic with a dark past and an uncertain future. She's solely responsible for the incarceration of her former boyfriend, a notorious serial killer by the name of Garrick Turrell (AJ Bowen). Her testimony put him behind bars for good, but her life comes into danger once again when Turrell manages to escape during a routine prisoner transport. At the same time, Sarah befriends one of her fellow recovering alcoholics who approaches her after a meeting to congratulate her declaration of three months of sobriety. She and new beau Kevin (Joe Swanberg) find themselves in an ever-evolving relationship, all the while Turrell begins to kill once again, despite the heightened media attention and the fear that his many public supporters could be aiding and abetting or providing comfort and resources to their hero. Can Sarah move on with Kevin, or will her dark past with a serial killer catch up to her?

A Horrible Way to Die isn't a flashy, high-dollar picture. Instead, it's a terribly run down, low grade, deliberately ragged movie that succeeds through a running bleakness that permeates every shot and defines the entire experience. The direction is anything but polished, but that's the style the movie aims to achieve. It's shaky, uncertain, obscured; Director Adam Wingard does everything in his power to keep the movie off-kilter, in-doubt, distressed, and in any way abnormal. It's a wonderfully effective style that doesn't feel trite and that isn't lost on the movie; it draws the audience into a world that with every passing second proves incredibly foreboding, but it's not until the final minutes does the story truly reflect the dismal stylings that define it. A Horrible Way to Die is an uncomfortable watch, and that's exactly why it's a strong movie. That it's capable of eliciting such an honest deep-in-the-gut raw sort of sensation proves its effectiveness. Most of the movie might be rather bland, but the payoff -- seeing it all come together so quickly, so uniquely, so surprisingly -- is a just reward for the lengthy and depressing set-up.

The result is a movie that's genuinely creepy. It's not a gimmick picture, it's not obsessed with dismembered bodies and excess bloodshed. It's more about story and mood, and while the latter is critical to the picture's true success, it's the former that can't truly be appreciated until the end of the movie. A Horrible Way to Die warrants a follow-up watch to see the plot unfold and look for any of the tell-tale signs that might point towards the finale. There are a few obvious ones, but the picture provides a genuine surprise at the end that truly isn't easy to see coming anywhere but in hindsight. The film is so deliberately paced that even an hour into its sub-ninety minute runtime it appears that it's going nowhere, telling a bleak and purposeless story of newfound love set against the backdrop of a recently-escaped mass murderer with a cult following, but it's much more than that. The acting is highly complimentary to the story and direction; it's equally bleak, uneasy, real, but at the same time internally fearful and externally uncertain. It's meticulous in just how precisely lines are delivered, right down to finding just the right pitch, just the right eye and body movement to sell the movie both in each individual scene and as they add up to the chilling double-twist revelation that comes at the end. This is a rich, well-conceived motion picture that proves big budget and constant action aren't always the keys to cinematic success.

A Horrible Way to Die Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

A Horrible Way to Die's 1080p, 1.78:1-framed transfer is ugly. But that seems to be its intent. At first glance, the transfer can be labeled a "mess." Background blockiness abounds, black crush runs rampant, banding appears throughout, fine detail comes up lacking, colors look drab, and the image is almost always in soft focus. However, all of these elements seem to reinforce the picture's deliberately downtrodden and downright ugly look and feel. It's not at all pretty, but the movie uses its appearance as another tool in helping to create its specific mood. As it is, the transfer barely passes muster as a high definition image. Raw stability at larger projection sizes is probably its best asset, but even on smaller screens the lack of detail and the various "issues" are readily evident. Assuming this is how the movie is supposed to look, it can't be faulted, but high definition eye candy this is not.

A Horrible Way to Die Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

A Horrible Way to Die arrives on Blu-ray with an Anchor Bay-standard Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack. The track proves adequate but not exemplary in every regard; perhaps the slightly mushy, degraded sensation is too a result of engineering meant to get it more in line with the plot and the visuals. As it is, the track demonstrates no problems in delivering a full and spacious sound field. Music enjoys a full front posture with adequate surround support elements. Clarity is acceptable, but the track never feels fully robust nor completely clear. A strong, foreboding low end rumble accompanies much of the film. It's tight and suitably aggressive, a touch rattly at the very bottom but well constructed and nicely suited for the film it supports. Ambience is quite good; a strong gusty wind blows effortlessly and naturally through the soundstage at times, and other, lesser atmospherics do a fair job of enveloping the listener into the movie. There are a few instances where the track almost drops out but comes back strong, and there's a single occurrence of unnatural static/buzzing sounds. Otherwise, dialogue is clear and center-speaker focused. This is a solid track, not exceptional, but a fine accompanying companion for the greater film.

A Horrible Way to Die Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

A Horrible Way to Die features two supplements, an audio commentary track and a behind-the-scenes featurette. The commentary, delivered by Director/Editor Adam Wingard and Writer/Producer Simon Barrett, is well-paced, comfortable, and energetic. The duo shares plenty of information in a straightforward but slightly humorous and sometimes bluntly honest manner. Stories from the set, various problems surrounding the shoot, the work of the cast, the picture's visual style, the history of the project, filmmaking procedures, and plenty more are all featured throughout. This is a quality commentary, hip but not pretentiously so, and well worth a listen. The other supplement, Behind the Scenes of 'A Horrible Way to Die' (1080p, 7:13), features cast and crew briefly discussing the film, followed by several minutes of raw behind-the-scenes footage which looks at various aspects of the filmmaking process.

A Horrible Way to Die Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

A Horrible Way to Die is a quality low-budget Chiller that takes its time building up a story that moves towards a surprising and gut-wrenching climax. The film is terribly bleak but beautifully so, even if the result is a movie that looks raggedly low-grade as opposed to something a bit more slick but still downtrodden, like The Road. The picture can be frustrating on the initial watch; it doesn't seem to be headed anywhere, even if there's no mistaking the overwhelming sense of despair that hangs over the thing, not to mention the title which, don't worry, isn't really telegraphing all that much. This is low-grade filmmaking at a very high level and is proof positive that atmosphere, plot, and solid acting are far more important to most movies than buckets of dollars and incessant computer assistance. Anchor Bay's Blu-ray release of A Horrible Way to Die features poor -- but seemingly intentional -- video, mediocre audio, and a couple of extras. Recommended on the strength of the film.