Adopting Terror Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.0

Adopting Terror Blu-ray Movie Review

Should Asylum fans adopt this Blu-ray into their collections?

Reviewed by Martin Liebman October 9, 2012

In the Liebman household, "adopting terror" is a term used to describe the action of taking Sassy, a.k.a. "Geek" (long story, don't ask), a usually loving but at times feisty, ferocious, and very self-protective Tortoiseshell cat, off the street and into a loving home, a home in which she is the self-declared queen over two other female cats and two humans. Only a single male Tonkinese cat, better known by his superhero name "The Green Vomit" (again, don't ask), stands in Geek's way of total household domination and her insidious plot to cover the world in cat hair and bad breath. But the term now has another meaning. Adopting Terror is the title of one of the latest low-budget Asylum pictures, this one starring Samwise Gamgee-Rudy as an adoptive father fending off his new child's diabolical biological parents.

The only thing more terrifying than my abduction is my diaper surprise.

Tim and Cheryl Broadbent (Sean Astin and Samaire Armstrong) have just adopted a beautiful baby girl. They're the newest happiest couple in the world. The adoption process goes smoothly enough, and visits from social worker Fay Hopkins (Monet Mazur) bring with them a little stress but nothing over which the family is too concerned. Things change when the child's biological father crashes her one-year birthday party. Kevin Anderson (Brendan Fehr) wants his baby back, and he'll stop at nothing to reclaim her. He stalks the Broadbent family and all but moves into their community. As the Broadbents become more paranoid and more terrified, they begin to piece together a series of dark secrets that could spell their demise and lead to a completely different life for their adoptive daughter.

Adopting Terror is one of those movies in which the good guys are made to look like the bad guys when the real bad guys harasses the good guys just enough to get under their skin but not break the law. Confused? Don't be. There's nothing in Adopting Terror that audiences haven't seen before, except, perhaps, an actual, real, honest-to-goodness, passably enjoyable movie from The Asylum. Though Adopting Terror follows convention to a fault, it does so with real technical proficiency, a script that's not a total embarrassment, and acting that's more hit than miss and never downright awful. The picture maneuvers through all of the usual elements, opening with an establishing villain sequence, moving on to the cheery adopting montage, and then slowly building up the tension between the Broadbent family and the stalker, Kevin Anderson. To the movie's credit, there's a nice but not particularly startling twist midway through the film that ups the ante and enhances the drama. Still, the movie never treads any sort of real dangerous territory and, not-so-spoiler-alert, it winds up exactly where movies of this sort always go. It's a terribly basic movie, but take it in context as an Asylum production and suddenly Adopting Terror looks really good next to the competition.

Of course, an Asylum movie of the highest standards still makes for a rather mediocre movie in the greater scheme of things, and as expected the picture is home to the usual array of continuity mistakes. Tim buys a Beretta 92 which is mistakenly called the Beretta PX4 Storm Subcompact at the gun shop, and he later tries to learn its operation by looking at an exploded view of a Walther P99. Kevin Anderson drives a truck advertising an extermination business when he's only seen working lawn care. The Apple logo is covered in the first shot of the Broadbent family laptop but is seen bare at least twice throughout the film. The picture certainly doesn't strive for much accuracy or authenticity, but the truth is that even with all of its positives and a rather lean runtime, it moves a little slowly in places and leaves audiences with little better to do than nitpick the movie. Even during the big chase at the end, viewers will be rooting for a pickup in the pace rather than finding themselves captivated by the climax. The movie entertains on a very casual level, though. Sean Astin gives an honest performance of a rather flat character; he shows little range but then again none is required for his Tim, and even with the fairly weak script and plot he never seems to be phoning in his performance. Brendan Fehr is suitably menacing in his part, capturing, maybe, the slick and cool villain angle which Judd Nelson so effectively used in his underrated Stalker film Relentless. Only Samaire Armstrong shows a hint of the lackadaisical in her performance; she seems to effectively sleepwalk and mumble for the duration, but the rest of the cast carries the movie even when she slips.

Adopting Terror Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Adopting Terror features a high quality 1080p, 1.78:1-framed transfer sourced from the original digital photography. If there's one thing The Asylum does well, it's picture quality, and this one does't disappoint. Though there's some moderate banding in spots and an instance or two of shimmering, the image largely satisfies with fabulous definition and bold colors. The image is consistently crisp, revealing intricate clothing and facial textures with ease. Medium- and long-distance shots also offer stable, sometimes striking details on cars, vegetation, and pavement. Colors are bright and varied; Broadbent home interiors are a little warm, but color balance is exceptional outdoors or in bright scenes. Flesh tones are fine and black levels appear accurate. Aside from that banding, there's little room for complaint. This is a rather stellar transfer from The Asylum.

Adopting Terror Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Asylum has of late been on board with the lossless audio revolution, and Adopting Terror contains a quality DTS-HD MA 5.1 track. The presentation is fine though not particularly robust by design. Clarity is good in every instance, whether score, sound effects, or dialogue. The surround speakers aren't used to great effect, but front-side spacing impresses. Minor effects such as the light bumpy rattle inside a car and louder elements like a laboring weed eater spill into the stage with sonic precision. Dialogue is accurate and flows from the center with no audible faults. This is a rather basic sound presentation but one that plays crisply and with the sort of higher end definition Blu-ray listeners expect.

Adopting Terror Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Adopting Terror contains the following Asylum-typical extras:

• Making of Featurette (1080p, 5:27): A short piece that recounts the plot and features Writer/Director Micho Rutare discussing the cast and the story. The supplement also examines the film from a technical perspective and looks at the making of an explosive scene.
• Gag Reel (1080p, 1:09).
• Trailers: Additional Asylum titles.

Adopting Terror Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Adopting Terror won't be reserved a spot at the next Academy Awards ceremony, but this thing might very well be the runaway winner of any contest ranking the best Asylum movies to date. It's only competition could really be Abraham Lincoln vs. Zombies which might have the edge in novelty but perhaps not structure, plot, or acting. Writer/Director Micho Rutare's Adopting Terror satisfies as a fairly average and adequate time killer. There are no surprises, even considering the movie's twist, but it's serviceably entertaining and worth checking out on a rainy day. The Asylum's Blu-ray release features expectedly strong video, a good lossless soundtrack, a couple of extras, and for the second time seamless menus. Could The Asylum be turning a corner? Recommended as a rental or a purchase if found for a low asking price.