Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.0
Overall		3.0

Hold Your Breath Blu-ray Movie Review

#Asylum.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman August 7, 2014

Hold Your Breath's alternate title is #holdyourbreath. What, exactly, does a "#hashtag" have to do with anything? Are movies now going to be named after their marketing campaigns? When will #Goseethismovie come out? What if it's officially called #Episode VII? The film makes no mention of #Twitter and the characters have their #cellphones confiscated at the beginning of the #movie, so any chance for them to tweet about all the #badstuff they endure goes right out the window (though it would have been #funny if the characters did tweet things like "OMG we're all about to die! #sucks #possession #murderdeathkill). #Whoknows, #whocares. It's #TheAsylum. #Mindlessmoviemaking is the norm, and for #kicks, the movie will heretofore be called #holdyourbreath because it's #fun and allows for more #hashtags throughout the review (and who doesn't like #hastags?). Anyway, #holdyourbreath isn't all bad, at least not for an #Asylum title. It's rather #trite and #unimaginative but the execution isn't terrible as it maneuvers through standard #TeenHorror motifs. Of course, it's all done on a #shoestringbudget and it lacks the polish associated with even #average genre films like The Ruins or Urban Legend, but it's nevertheless a #decentride into #familiarterritory.

#holdingbreath.

Decades after the #execution of the notorious killer Dietrich Von Claus, a group of #friends embarks on a weekend #getaway where no #cellphones are permitted. When they drive past a #cemetery, Jery (Katrina Bowden) urges her friends to #holdtheirbreath, warning them of an #urbanlegend that she obviously believes that states that evil #wanderingspirits could #inhabit the living. #Stoner Kyle (Seth Cassell) is the only group member to ignore the request, and he, of course, becomes #possessed by Von Claus' spirit. The group soon thereafter stumbles upon an old #prison. They all #explore or run away to have #sex, all but Kyle, that is, who #murders a police officer in cold blood. As the day progresses, the #spirit jumps from one body to another, having its #bloodyway with the group, dwindling its #numbers and #havingfun doing it.

Even while #holdyourbreath veers away from the usual #Asylum flavor of #epicfail, the film nevertheless runs into a few #problems along the way. Though it's thankfully used to a #minimum, the film sees more #digitalblood than is healthy for it. The filmmakers have mixed digital with #practical, slathering faces with gruesome #makeup and make-believe #sinew, but various shots of people becoming #rippedinhalf or killed with an #electricmixer are met with disappointingly phony bloodletting. Further, various sparks from the electrocution or a scene in which a cop is #fried when his testicles are connected to a car battery look terribly fake. The resultant #explosion, too, looks terrible, as does the burnt-out #wreckage that's seen afterwards. Suffice it to say, #holdyourbreath is much more gruesome than the standard #Asylum picture, though the combination of #baddigital and #decentpractical lessens the overall effect. #Saw this is not.

On the#plusside, #holdyourbreath does find some positives in its corner. For one, the film enjoys a pretty decent #pace. It moves #swiftly and plays with a fair bit of #energy. Little known fact: #TheAsylum began life as a low-budget #Horror label, so there's some #history with the genre and it's perhaps not much of a #surprise that the studio does a little bit better with a movie like this rather than #cheap #knockoffs in, say, the #Sci-Fi genre. Better, the #acting isn't bad. For as much #skin as the movie shows, and considering that these aren't exactly the #hottestnames in Hollywood, one might expect #subpar performances. Fortunately, the cast seems to at least #enjoy the roller coaster of #fear and the opportunity, for many of them, to #portray both #heroes and #villains in the same movie. The end result is a #decentHorrorromp that may not be #original but that is at least a little more than a useless #timekiller. That's about all one can #askfor with #TheAsylum.

Hold Your Breath Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

#holdyourbreath arrives on #Blu-ray with the typically #strong #Asylum 1080p transfer. The #digital photography does yield a slightly #flat, #glossy appearance, but the transfer nevertheless #impresses throughout. #Details are excellent. #Closeups reveal intricate skin details, even in lesser lighting conditions. Terrain and foliage are nicely defined in the film's bright #outdoor scenes, while #interiors inside the #prison reveal quality wear on surfaces, from doors to the wooden electric chair. #Colors are pleasing, particularly the bright natural greens seen #outside, but even #inside the prison, there's a nice variety of balanced, accurate shades. #Blacklevels satisfy and never go #toodark or #toonoisy, while #skintones, likewise, appear accurate. Light #banding creeps into the frame on occasion, but otherwise the transfer shows no #majorflaws. Overall, this is a #quality transfer from #TheAsylum.

Hold Your Breath Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

#holdyourbreath features a good, high quality DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 #lossless soundtrack. #Music is invigorating, producing well-spaced notes and a balanced #surround support structure. #Clarity impresses in both the lighter notes and the heavier musical elements alike. The track further produces some quality #atmospheric sound effects, including #chirpingbirds in various exteriors and #boomingthunder later in the film, both enveloping the listener with a healthy #surround element. A few heavier #action elements, like #explosions and #gunshots, are suitably robust. #Dialogue delivery is smooth and accurate from the #centerspeaker. Overall, this is a #quality soundtrack from #TheAsylum.

Hold Your Breath Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

#holdyourbreath contains a short #featurette and a #gagreel.

• Making of Featurette (1080p, 5:04): A short look at both the #story and the #characters.
• Gag Reel (1080p, 1:52): A few #flubs from the set.
• Previews (1080p): Additional #Asylum titles.

Hold Your Breath Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

#holdyourbreath isn't an #epicfail, but it's not destined to #redefine the Teen Horror genre, either. It's a #serviceable little picture that should #entertain genre fans, despite some special effects #flaws and a fairly #generic storyline. Still, the #acting and #pacing are fair, and outside of those special effects the #productionvalues aren't ever #embarrassing. Fans could do #worse, and #TheAsylum has, many times before. #The Aslyum's #Blu-ray release of #holdyourbreath delivers high end #video, good lossless #audio, and a couple of throwaway #supplements. Give it a #rent. #out #endofreview #ontothenextone.