6.5 | / 10 |
Users | 3.8 | |
Reviewer | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.8 |
The authorities are baffled. A half-a-dozen strikingly beautiful teenage girls have disappeared, only to be discovered a month later — murdered and mutilated almost beyond recognition. When a new victim, 16-year-old high school cheerleader Riley Lawson, finds herself trapped and tortured in a basement prison by the psychopath Otis, she resolves to do WHATEVER she has to in order to stay alive. By chance she escapes and Riley informs her relieved parents (Daniel Stern and Illeana Douglas) and younger brother where she was held. Bypassing the FBI agent assigned to the case, the Lawson’s conspire to take their revenge and kill the madman who kidnapped their daughter… but circumstances begin to spin beyond their control when Otis's brother arrives on the scene.
Starring: Bostin Christopher, Ashley Johnson, Daniel Stern, Illeana Douglas, Kevin PollakHorror | 100% |
Thriller | 41% |
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 2.0
Portuguese: Dolby Digital 2.0
English, English SDH, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Cantonese
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 2.0 | |
Video | 2.0 | |
Audio | 3.0 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
We are knee-deep in dookie.
The Dark Comedy has always been a prism through which filmmakers convey social angst, the
darkest depths of man, or political satire framed in the context of comedy. American Psycho and
Heathers are the
genre's shining lights, films that embody the Dark Comedy to its core. Heathers is a film
of teenage
rebellion, acceptance, conformity, and hate. It offers a grisly, disturbing, poignant, and satirical
look at high school in the 1980s, the stereotypes and cliques of the generation, and the isolation
and despair of those left to sit at the corner table of the cafeteria to mull over the lifestyle from
which they've been shunned or have chosen to shun, for whatever reason -- as they plot an end
to conformity, vanity, and acceptance into the upper echelons of high school society with nothing
other than good looks, the right clothes, or a starting position on the football team. Otis
is also a dark comedy, but it lacks the depth and meaning of the best films of its kind. It's
superficial, tries too hard to play on the high school angst angle, and morphs into an odd kind of
revenge film that does send a clear message about the importance of levelheadedness in a time
of crisis, but for the most part, the film fails to engender any emotional or intellectual response
from the viewer. Nevertheless, Otis is a fun and interesting watch in context, taking it
completely superficially and ignoring any of the jaunts the film tries to take into meaningful
satire, but even then, the movie doesn't deliver on what seems to be the promise of gore, if one
were to look at the various power tools and the "uncut" label attached to the Blu-ray release of
the picture.
Get out of my dreams, get into my car!
Otis delivers an unimpressive visual experience. Presented in 1080p and framed at 2.35:1, the transfer is one of the lesser ones on the market. The film was shot on video, and it definitely looks it, coming off as a cheap made for TV movie. The image is smooth and offers a bright sheen over many shots with noise permeating the picture every now and again. Many shots are incredibly hazy with little resolution, clarity, or detail (a scene in chapter 11 featuring dialogue between Otis and Elmo is a fine example). Colors are moderately vibrant, only in places, but the movie never looks real. Very processed in appearance, flat, and completely uninteresting, nothing stands out and visually exciting. Black levels and flesh tones are questionable. Otis is a boring movie from a visual perspective and one of the lesser discs on the market in terms of video quality.
Otis comes to Blu-ray with a lossless Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack. Dialogue is a bit low in volume, but generally clear. Music is clear with decent fidelity and spread nicely across the front soundstage. The rear speakers get a good workout with some nice discrete effects in the form of gunfire heard over the opening news footage-inspired credits. There is a bit of rattling and rumbling from the subwoofer as Otis' junk mobile huffs and puffs its way out of frame after he kidnaps Riley in chapter 6. It also pans nicely across the soundstage with a solid rear presence. Like its video quality, Otis is completely uninteresting from a sonic perspective. It fares a little better than the video, however, and is a decent enough, if not forgettable, soundtrack.
This Blu-ray edition of Otis is sure to torture Blu-ray fans with its lack of even one single supplement.
Otis is a movie that lost its way somewhere between development and final product. The groundwork has been laid for a phenomenal Dark Comedy, a satiric look at the world of the lives of those shunned and ignored growing up, and of revenge, middle-class suburbia style. Neither element works all that well, particularly the latter. What's missing is a slightly harsher edge, the gore, and intensity. It does have the easygoing, free-spirited, independent feel, and the movie isn't a bad effort, just one that feels terribly incomplete. As it stands, Otis is watchable, in a 3:00 AM triple feature schlock drive-in sort of way. Warner Brothers and Raw Feed present Otis on Blu-ray as a completely bare-bones package, lacking even a main menu. The picture quality is subpar and the lossless soundtrack is nothing to brag about. Worth a rental for the curious.
2015
2009
Unrated Collector's Edition
2007
2017
2011
2012
2013
2013
1992
Unrated
2010
1972
2013
Collector's Edition
2003
Unrated
2005
2019
2005
2006
2015
Uncut
2013
Director's Cut
2007