Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

The Veil Blu-ray Movie Review

A ghost story involving a cult that committed mass suicide.

The Veil is a horror-thriller from producer Jason Blum (Get Out, Split). Exploring the darkness of cult groups, the film takes audiences on a scary trip. Starring Jessica Alba (Sin City, Fantastic Four), the terror is only just beginning.

Maggie Price (Jessica Alba) and Sarah Hope (Lily Rabe) decide to return to the house of a cult group who committed mass suicide 30 years prior while following the leadership of Jim Jacobs (Thomas Jane). The lone survivors of the mass suicide event, the girls are now adults and decide to bring a documentary crew with them to see what they can find. As the women approach the horrific old, abandoned house, it turns out there might be more eerie issues at play than either bargained for.

The performances are nothing to write home about in The Veil. Jessica Alba is adequate in her part but the performance doesn't exactly test her abilities as an actress, either. The best performance is by Thomas Jane as the cult-leader Jim Jacobs. Having said that, Jane is completely over-the-top. Take that for what you will.

The production design by Lauryn Leclere (The Punisher: Dirty Laundry) is questionable at times. The landscape surrounding the house looks like an eerie back-yard. The house and the set pieces seem far-fetched at times. (Of course, some of this is contributed to by elements in the story: such as a scene in which the group attempts to flip on a light-switch in the house abandoned decades ago – when no one would have been paying for the electricity to stay on unused for decades). Scary light-switch? No, not really.

Jessica Alba wondering why she signed up for The Veil.

The cinematography by Steeven Petitteville (Operator, Behold the Lamb) is ridiculously dark and dreary at times. Though the photography seems professional, the visual approach sometimes seems questionable. There are many scenes in which the film nears pitch-black visuals and it looks as if all color has been completely desaturated from the print. This makes The Veil an unusually dark looking film – and not in a pleasant way.

One of the more positive aspects of the film is the music score composed by Nathan Whitehead (Beyond Skyline, The Purge: Election Year). The composer crafted an effective score that fit the material well. While not a classic score by any means, the music fits the mood perfectly and it is a example of a composer going beyond the mechanics of the filmmaking on display. A solid effort by Whitehead.

The special effects leave a lot to be desired. The low-budget nature of the production means that only a few scenes truly utilize the effects. When these moments occur, it seems as though these scenes are for traditional jump-scares alone. The special effects aren't particularly scary or complex overall and seem no more original than countless other horror films (and even that is probably an under-estimate).

The screenplay by Robert Ben Garant (Night at the Museum, Herbie Fully Loaded) is perhaps the worst element of The Veil. The concept itself is somewhat offensive: showcasing ghostly apparitions or the like for characters who committed mass suicide. The script clearly took inspiration from real-life gatherings which ended in mass-suicide (without being a “based-on-a-true- story” production). It doesn't take this aspect very seriously and the script mainly enjoys in having cheap scares. The characters are uninspired and the so is the plot.

Directed by Phil Joanou (State of Grace, Final Analysis), The Veil is far from a horror classic. There are many elements that don't work at all. Yet somehow Joanou manages to turn the film into a “it's-so-bad-it's-kinda-good” experience. The kind of film one can chuckle at occasionally because nothing seems to be well-done. Editor Paul Norling (The Return of Mike and Ike, Naked Hotel) could have definitely cut down the film from its 93 minute run-time: even that is over-long.

The Veil Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Kino Lorber, The Veil is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the original theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1 widescreen. The film has received a truly stunning presentation. The image quality looks as sharp as a tack: there is great detail throughout. During the entire presentation, I was intrigued by the use of subdued colors: the color grading is a lot darker than a typical production and the encode retains that hyper-stylized aesthetic.

Some of the footage was given an intentionally faded appearance. These scenes are satisfying a specific visual cue, so these are not sequences that should degrade the video score at all. These flashback scenes have a lot of naturalistic film grain. The modern-day scenes look much sleeker and manage to make the fight-fest scenes far more interesting. The encode is altogether effective at handling all of the material from the film and never seems to suffer from compression artifacts. A satisfactory transfer.

The Veil Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround sound. The audio quality on the release sounds exceptional from start to finish. There is a great use of the surround sound stage to make things more interesting for viewers: there are many scenes which use the rear speakers to terrific effect with very engaging and involving sound-mix cues to cause "jump scares" and other such moments. These scenes play all the better in surround sound. The track is also exceptionally crisp, clear, and dynamic. Dialogue is easy to understand. A top-notch audio encode (and one that also integrates the music score with ease).

Please Note: The release includes an optional DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. Optional English subtitles are provided.

The Veil Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Audio Commentary by Director Phil Joanou

Interview with Actor Thomas Jane and Director Phil Joanou (HD, 19:00)

The Veil Theatrical Trailer (HD, 1:29)

The release also includes a selection of trailers promoting other releases available from distributor Kino Lorber: Stretch (HD, 1:27) and Thursday (SD, 2:06).

The Veil Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Veil is a badly made horror-film that fails on most levels. The only real reason to see the film is as a fan of Jessica Alba – although she doesn't get much to do. The script is lazy and uninspired. The film is occasionally laugh-out-loud funny because of how bad it is – the kind of film that impresses you with how badly the filmmakers missed the mark. Rent It.