Rating summary

Movie		1.5
Video		2.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		2.0

Mortuary Blu-ray Movie Review

“That which is dead…Cannot eternal lie…With strange eons…Even death may die.”

Reviewed by Dustin Somner August 16, 2009

Director Tobe Hooper made a huge splash on the horror genre with the 1974 release of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Over the next fifteen years, he found a varying degree of success with the “Salem’s Lot” miniseries, Poltergeist, Lifeforce and the ill-received follow-up to his crowning achievement, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2. From that point forward, Hooper decended into obscurity, directing low-budget films and occasional episodes of various television shows. Whether his downward spiral was a result of his own desire to remain outside the hollywood spotlight, or a rejection by major studios following several failed ventures, the once-great director with seemingly limitless potential has now been reduced to directing shoddy, amateur films such as Mortuary.

I'm not sure I'd go and stick my head in a random door with three locks on it.

Searching for a new beginning after the death of her husband, Leslie Doyle (Denise Crosby) uproots her children to buy an old run-down funeral home that was once owned by a family known as the Fowlers. Upon their arrival in town, Leslie’s rebellious son Jonathan (Dan Byrd) takes a job at a local diner, where he befriends Liz (Alexandria Adi), and learns of a town legend that involves the house and cemetary his mother now owns. Apparently, the Fowler family originally moved to Santa Loraina, California to farm the land, but when the soil wouldn’t nurture any crops, they turned to the mortuary business. The last generation of the Fowlers had a son named Bobby, who was born disfigured and kept away from the public eye. Enduring years of torture at the hands of his parents, Bobby went missing by the age of 8 and was never seen again, though many locals insist Bobby still lurks in the shadows of the cemetary and murdered his mother and father 10 years after his disappearance. Not long after the Doyles move into the Fowler residence, strange occurrences begin to happen within the house and the surrounding area, forcing Jonathan to protect his young sister and face the reality that perhaps Bobby Fowler is still pursuing revenge for his unfair plight.

While Mortuary may not be the worst horror film I’ve ever seen over the years, it surely stands as one of most disappointing. During the initial hour, I was sufficiently entertained and hoping for a conclusion that would do the film justice. Unfortunately, all of the positives went down the porcelain tank as the second act played out, leaving me with a general impression that this was nothing more than a dismal attempt at cashing in on Tobe Hooper’s name. I’ve seen made-for-television horror films that manage to generate more thrills than this R-rated production, and I couldn’t help noticing the blatant attempts by Hooper to rip off his own masterpiece (look for the dinner scene late in the film, or the screaming monster of a man that could easily be Leatherface without a mask). By the time I realized the story of Bobby Fowler was being glossed over in favor of a storyline about infectious soil, I’d lost all interest in the plight of the characters as they fend off a generic zombie onslaught. If that gives you any idea how weak the plot is (soil fungus that infects the townsfolk through open wounds, slow-moving zombies, and a madman running around in underground catacombs), I’ll consider my job here complete.

The acting in Mortuary is surprisingly decent considering the unsuccessful plot of the film. Dan Byrd (best known for his stint on the short-lived series “Aliens in America”) and Denise Crosby (Lieutenant Tasha Yar from Star Trek: The Next Generation) do an admirable job stepping into their roles as the main characters, with Crosby demonstrating some notable acting chops as she morphs into a far different character later in the film. The supporting players aren’t quite as impressive, though I should give a special mention to young Stephanie Patton as Jamie Doyle, who turns in a performance that runs a wide emotional gamut. Her ability to convey happiness, fear and sadness is impressive, though my adoration is tempered slightly by the fact that she was 12-years old at the time the film was made (her character is likely closer to the age of seven). The one casting choice that appears grossly out of place, is the inclusion of Alexandria Adi as Jonathan’s love interest. Although Adi looks amazingly young and attractive for a 34 year-old actress, she doesn’t look young enough to play the role of a high school student, especially when Byrd resembles a junior high student. Needless to say, there’s zero chemistry between the two characters, creating several awkward scenes. Lastly, I’d like to give an honorable mention for worst actors of the year (2005) to the three individuals (Courtney Peldon, Bug Hall and Tarah Paige) who portray the over-sexed trio of victims in the film. Accepting their roles in Mortuary is definitely not the way to start or continue an acting career, but I guess everyone has to accept a paycheck when it’s offered.

Mortuary Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in 1080p utilizing the MPEG-2 codec (at an average bitrate of 19Mbps), Mortuary is fairly underwhelming as a high-definition product. Typical of a low-bitrate MPEG-2 transfer, the level of fine-object detail is marginal at best, with a noticeable softening of textures (most prevalent in facial close-ups). Further hampering the visual quality is a generally drab color spectrum that appears heavily filtered in an effort to generate an overcast look. As a result, there's a bluish tint that dominates the daytime sequences and adds to the dreary feel of the production. Unfortunately, the situation doesn't improve significantly with black levels, which rarely sink to inky depths during low-light scenes, leaving contrast appearing less differentiated than I'd like. On a positive note, I never noticed the presence of digital artifacting, edge haloes, or other transfer related defects, but there's a significant amount of grain littering the backgrounds of almost every scene.

Mortuary Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Containing a surprising number of audio tracks (all in the native language of English), Mortuary delivers a decent audio experience for a low-budget production, though I'm still disappointed by the lack of a lossless surround track to round out the selection. Having sampled each track throughout the course of the film, I finally arrived at the conclusion that the best surround mix is the DTS option. It's certainly not light-years beyond the proficiency of the Dolby Digital 5.1 mix, but sounded slightly fuller to my ears. One of the driving forces behind the chills and thrills of a horror film is the establishment of a strong audio presence to set the mood. In that regard, I'd say Mortuary is a success, with spine-tingling music that slowly builds to a crescendo when the action kicks into gear. Sound effects are well-placed throughout the surround field to establish floor-board creaks and footsteps that creep in from all directions as if your standing within the scene. Dialogue is the only area of weakness in the overall balance of the track, since it's occasionally drowned out by the music or overly loud effects. Taken as a whole, I doubt many viewers will find much to complain about in the DTS audio track, though a lossless track would have been a welcomed addition in place of the other three inferior tracks.

Mortuary Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Inside the Graveyard (480p [4:3], Dolby Digital 2.0, 53:40 min): This occasionally ominous featurette contains a behind-the-scenes look at the filming of Mortuary, interspersed with interviews of cast members, director Tobe Hooper, and several other key players on the film crew. It feels a bit contrived to imply the film was shot in a haunted house, but that seems to be the underlying theme everyone wants the viewer to accept as they discuss their experiences on the set of this horror "masterpiece". In all honesty, I'd only recommend this supplement if you absolutely love the film.

The only other extra included on the disc is a standard definition extended trailer that runs a whopping fourteen minutes in length (quite possibly the longest trailer I've ever seen).

Mortuary Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If you couldn't tell by now, I'd recommend you steer clear of Mortuary and set your sights on the wealth of alternate horror selections currently available on Blu-ray. I have to believe Tobe Hooper still has potential as a director, but his continued lack of decent material might suggest he needs to sit down and actually write a horror film for his next directorial outting. After all, I'm sure he can't do worse than the plot of Mortuary.