Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.5
Audio		3.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		3.0

The Shortcut Blu-ray Movie Review

A DTV Horror flick that tries and, in some ways, succeeds.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman June 29, 2010

Come on, it's just a shortcut.

Horror movies have always seemed to be the low grade earners when it comes time to deal out yearly report cards for movies. For every The Shining that's lauded for all the right reasons -- a great story, tight direction, marvelous acting -- there are many hundreds more Horror films that fail to earn even a shred of respect from the more picky and haughty of critics and fans. It stands to reason, then, that direct-to-video Horror films -- those that are made so cheaply and with such low production values and expectations that they don't even warrant a theatrical run -- are probably considered almost cinema anathema by most, and not for some unfounded or unjust reason. If studio Horror films lack originality and ingenuity in favor of outrageous violence, then the rip-offs and low-end pictures that try and capitalize on the bloodlust of ravenous genre fans must by definition be bottom scrapers with no discernible value. There's always an exception to the rule, and The Shortcut is just that. No, it's not the DTV equivalent of The Shining, but for a budget-minded Horror flick that stays the course; knows its place; and doesn't settle for an abysmal plot, awful acting, or zero atmosphere, it's not at all a dull watch, even if it is mostly inconsequential fare.

Two young men, trapped helplessly behind a Blu-ray.com watermark...

Derek (Andrew Seeley) is the new kid at school, and while he's managed to befriend Mark (Dave Franco) and Lisa (Shannon Woodward), he's got his eye on Christy (Katrina Bowden), the girlfriend of a football player and one of the most popular girls in school. Derek's also got a younger brother, Tobey (Nicholas Elia), who attends the local elementary school. When Tobey tries to impress his new friends by venturing out behind the school and taking a wooded shortcut home that's said to be dangerous, he stumbles across a mutilated dog and a crazy old man who doesn't take kindly to intruders on his property. The encounter shakes up Derek as much as it does Tobey, and Derek makes it his mission to learn more about the old man that lurks about the shortcut home and seems to have a fetish for killing local dogs. He recruits his friends and school jock Taylor (Josh Emerson) -- who believes that his dog has been killed by the old man -- to join the investigation. Derek also seizes the moment and uses it to gain points with Christy, but even with his friends and a potential new love at his side, he cannot prepare himself for what he'll find when he passes through the most dangerous shortcut in the country.

Make no mistake, The Shortcut revels in Horror cliché. Every element is here in some form or fashion, whether the obligatory "killer POV" shot as he observes a young couple foolishly unaware of their surroundings, the overly-curious and under-prepared teenagers that venture into the dark and spooky house with but a flashlight, the trite genre music that tries to make something that's not really scary or foreboding scary and foreboding, and even the expected but not at all necessary twist ending. One can't help but think while watching The Shortcut that the film was cobbled together by a group of filmmakers inspired not by genre greats but by the deluge of teen-centric pictures from the 1990s -- Urban Legend, The Faculty, I Know What You Did Last Summer -- with lesser, but not altogether miserable, results. In fact, The Shortcut is rather good, all things considered; sure, it pales next to even that trio referenced above, but considering its DTV origins, one can't help but admire a movie that's at least good enough to hold down the fort and keep genre fans watching, not because of an excess of sex and violence (there's almost none of either) but because of a story that's halfway interesting and a pace that admirably refrains from going full-throttle with violence for violence's sake. Instead, The Shortcut focuses on building an atmosphere and characters that aren't exactly Horror movie elites, but that at least make the movie worth the effort and easy to watch.

The Shortcut finds a good balance and hits its stride early on; some may be turned off by the picture's lack of blood and guts, but slightly more discriminating fans -- if there is such a class of people when it comes to the DTV market -- will enjoy the movie's pacing and characterization, the latter in particular a benefit to a film that tries to develop not only its heroes but its villain in hopes of adding weight and purpose to the story. Does it work? To a degree, yes, but it's not a deciding factor as to whether the film proves worthy of discussion and second showings when it's all said and done. The betterment of the story comes from the development of the heroes; they're a typical bunch to be sure, and the acting ranges from poor to merely satisfactory, but the script takes its time to build the gang to a point that their actions, decisions, and fates seem like more than simply images projected on screens and words pouring out of speakers. By the third act, the audience may very well find an inkling of kinship with them; while it's not enough to completely absorb viewers into the film -- there's still plenty of "don't go in there!" and "hey, stupid, look behind you!" sort of moments that by default take the audience out of the movie in the sense that there's an obvious barrier and comfort zone that exists between the screen and the sofa -- there's enough of a bond, enough familiarity, enough sympathy for them to generate some added tension to the experience.

The Shortcut Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Starz/Anchor Bay brings The Shortcut to Blu-ray with a fairly handsome 1080p, 2.40:1-framed transfer that's not going to compete with the likes of a big-budget Action movie given the royal high definition treatment but instead delivers a consistently satisfying presentation that's about as good as this budget-minded film and release is going to get. The picture opens with a 1940s flashback sequence that sees some crushing blacks but is otherwise stable if not slightly soft around the edges. Several flashback scenes to the 1940s and 1950s take on a slightly colder, paler, and washed out appearance, but such is the filmmakers' intention and not a glitch in certain scenes during the movie. The modern-era segments, which comprise the bulk of the picture, sport a bright and glossy sheen that's virtually free of noise and deliver crisp detailing and strong colors across the board. Whether outdoor terrain or the various objects scattered about school and home interiors, this transfer showcases many of the smaller nuances that make high definition transfers stand out from their standard-def counterparts. Colors are particularly vibrant but not excessively or unnaturally so, and black levels in these segments fare better than their flashback counterparts. Flesh tones appear neutral throughout, too. For a budget release of a "never-heard-of-it-before" DTV Horror flick, The Shortcut looks very good on Blu-ray.

The Shortcut Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Shortcut doesn't take the longer road to Blu-ray, choosing to forego a lossless or uncompressed presentation in favor of a somewhat less proficient Dolby Digital 5.1 presentation. The film's musical presentation is handled with a workmanlike efficiency, the notes playing as fairly clean but with a hint of shallowness and an underpowered posture that will leave listeners wanting more. Dialogue suffers from the same fate, playing as abundantly clear but lacking in absolute precision and power at reference volume. Atmospherics are handled well enough though mostly across the front; a symphony of nighttime insects and rustling leaves create a fair atmosphere in one early sequence, though some heavier effects -- rattling chains, gunfire, and other action-oriented elements -- play with a bit more precision and power than the lesser but no less important environmental ambience. Surround speakers are sparsely engaged, but then again, the movie doesn't seem to have all that many scenes screaming out for a more pronounced back-channel presentation. All said, The Shortcut would benefit from a lossless presentation, but the Dolby Digital track is good enough to get the job done.

The Shortcut Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The Shortcut offers no extras.

The Shortcut Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Nothing here says "classic," but nothing says "DTV" either. The Shortcut is just fine for what it is, a midlevel Horror movie that's really not all that scary but that does feature solid character development and a fair story, both of which manage to hold the audience's interest even though the picture is noticeably lacking in blood and guts. Hardcore genre fans that are more accustomed to the grisly violence of the Saw series will be disappointed, but those with a soft spot for 1990s-style teen Horror movies just might be surprised with what The Shortcut has to offer. This Starz/Anchor Bay Blu-ray release doesn't offer any supplements, but it does deliver a fair technical presentation. Worth a rental for Horror fans that don't mind an absence of hardcore gore.