The Toybox Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		2.5

The Toybox Blu-ray Movie Review

RV from Hell

Reviewed by Dr. Stephen Larson October 14, 2018

The Toybox can be purchased by contacting the filmmakers through their movie's official website.

The best haunted house stories present a series of mysteries and clues for its inhabitants to solve. These usually lead to a probing of the background as well as history of the house. Director Tom Nagel (ClownTown) and his three writers have tried to do that with a haunted RV in The Toybox and while there's a big reveal over an hour in, it comes too little and too late. The filmmakers establish the right atmosphere in the prologue. A young boy peddles around a California suburban neighborhood at the dead of night. As he bikes around a sidewalk, he passes a mobile home which suddenly ejects a door. Curious, he peers inside. We know this will not end well. The next morning, a fractured family with strained relationships are packing the RV for a journey that patriarch Charles (Greg Violand) hopes will become a road trip toward reconciliation. Charles is a widower whose fulfilling a dying wish that his wife requested: take the family across the Mojave Desert to a historical site home to an ancient cave with wall paintings. Along for the trek is Charles's oldest son, Steve (Jeff Denton, who also co-wrote the story and penned the script). Steve's wife, Jennifer (a very tan Denise Richards), and the couple's plucky daughter, Olivia (Malika Michelle), join them in a ride that they think will be full of fun and games. Steve's slacker brother, Jay (Brian Nagel), isn't getting along too well with anyone as he's still reeling from apparently losing a significant other. The ride begins alright but then the RV demonstrates some odd behavior of its own. The family stops in the middle of the desert where they encounter motorist siblings Samantha (Mischa Barton) and Mark (Matt Mercer), who have car trouble. Brother and sister join the group in the RV, which malfunctions and spins out of control.

Don't go into the RV!

One of the nagging problems with The Toybox is that actors receive only pedestrian direction. Richards tries to show that she's a loving and caring mom but the way she utters "honey" and "sweetie" to Olivia rings as too artificial. When there's a big accident and something bad happens to Mark, I kept waiting for Samantha to exhibit grief and sorrow. She's naturally frustrated with the family for having her and her brother ride in the RV in the first place. But too often, the characters just move on to doing something else without considering the ramifications of what just happened.

The film generates suspense and tension that goes through fits and starts. Nagel has made an old-fashion horror/Western but outside of claustrophobia, the RV isn't that scary. It's also irritating that the characters don't pay attention enough. Didn't Charles ask about any of the previous owners? Did Steve bother to check the old license and registration in the glove department? Shouldn't everything have been cleaned up and taken out of the RV before it was sold to Charles? The Toybox isn't patient enough to consider narrative logic as it proceeds hastily to the next jump scare.

The Toybox Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Toybox arrives on a MOD BD-25 courtesy of Skyline Entertainment. The picture is presented in the originally shot aspect ratio of 2.39:1. The image has no traces of artifacts although it can look oversharpened at times. More specifically, the faces can pop out as waxed or plastic. There aren't many primary colors or a wide spectrum exhibited. The movie was photographed in broad daylight and at dusk in the Mojave Desert, which is close to the town of Ridgecrest, CA. Conditions were dry, arid, and blustery. The transfer does a faithful job of replicating cinematographer Ken Stachnik's intended look. Horror film historian Kim Newman saw The Toybox in the UK and describes the aesthetic as "faded, fly-specked and grungy." That's the appearance here, especially cramped scenes in the RV and along the windows. Skyline has encoded the 81-minute feature at an average video bitrate of 21993 kbps.

The Toybox Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Skyline has supplied a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround (4162 kbps, 24-bit) and a downconverted DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Stereo (2040 kbps, 24-bit). The lossless 5.1 provides an immersive experience. The listener can literally hear and feel the RV's tires, the swooshing wind, and flies buzzing. The sound is also staccato with some high-end notes when there's an abrupt cut to a non-diegetic insert. Dialogue is very clear and comprehensible. Composer Holly Amber Church's score sounds in part like Jerry Goldsmith's music for The Haunting over the main titles. The sound track is given equal weight on the fronts and surround channels.

Optional English SDH are available for the feature.

The Toybox Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Cast & Crew Commentary - a four-person track comprised of director Tom Nagel, co-writer/lead actor Jeff Denton, producer Jeff Miller, and actor Brian Nagel. In English, not subtitled.

• Behind-the-Scenes Featurette (9:17, 1080p) - B-roll footage of Nagel directing the actors and getting an assist from his makeup artists and camera crew.

• Trailer (1:11, 1080p) - an anamorphic widescreen trailer for The Toybox.

The Toybox Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I liked the premise of The Toybox and how Nagel set it up but was let down by the execution. The Toybox wants to do for the RV what other films have been done for the automobile. The Car, Race with the Devil, The Hills Have Eyes, The Hearse, Christine, and Maximum Overdrive are several of the genre's trendsetters. If you're a fan of Richards and/or Barton, I'd suggest a rental first. The Toybox is available on Amazon Instant, iTunes, and Google Play. Please note that Amazon US and Amazon UK are currently only stocking the DVD. If you want the Blu-ray, you're advised to contact Skyline: info@skylineentertainment.com