7.6 | / 10 |
Users | 0.0 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
The doorbell rings, the cry goes out: Trick 'r Treat! But, wait. What's actually going on during this ghostly All Hallows' Eve? Something eerie and unexpected. Something splattered and spooky. Something that brings ghouls, vampires and werewolves into the night.
Starring: Quinn Lord, Brian Cox, Dylan Baker, Leslie Bibb, Rochelle AytesHorror | Uncertain |
Thriller | Uncertain |
Dark humor | Uncertain |
Holiday | Uncertain |
Drama | Uncertain |
Comedy | Uncertain |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
BDInfo
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (locked)
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.0 | |
Audio | 4.0 | |
Extras | 5.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
When is a portmanteau not a portmanteau? Well, one answer might be “when it’s Trick ‘r Treat”, the enjoyable “anthology” outing from 2007 that, like a resurrected zombie schoolchild, is back for another go around on Blu-ray after two previous Blu-ray releases from Warner Brothers. The horror anthology has been a staple of films at least from the days of Dead of Night back in the 1940s, but perhaps attained its current standing courtesy of a bunch of sixties efforts from the likes of Amicus. Michael Dougherty, the writer-director of Trick ‘r Treat, takes the basic concept of an anthology or portmanteau, namely a series of “episodes” tied together in some way for a unified film experience, and tweaks it slightly by having a timeline that is kind of a pretzel or Boolean loop, and by also having each of the “independent” stories intersect with each other in various ways. The result is an appealing and undeniably spooky feeling enterprise, one that introduces “Sam”, a weird little tyke wearing a footie one piece pajama outfit, whose head is completely covered in burlap. Sam wanders in and out of the stories, wreaking havoc on those who don’t celebrate Halloween “properly”.
Trick 'r Treat is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Scream Factory, an imprint of Shout! Factory, with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.40:1. Shout!'s press sheet accompanying this release touts a new 2K scan without specifying the source, but as I tend to do with my reviews of previously released titles, I've tried to come close to duplicating some of the screenshots Ken included with his review so that those interested can do side by side comparisons. My following comments are made with the admission I don't currently have either of the Warner releases and so can't do a "live" side by side comparison, though I have seen the first Warner release. A cursory comparison of screenshots indicates that both color timing and brightness are slightly different between the two releases, and there are some moments on this release that looked slightly more pink(ish) to my eyes than the Warner release (compare, for example screenshot 4 of this review with screenshot 2 of the old review). The original Warner release can look slightly brighter at times (contrast both of the first screenshots), and the palette on the Scream looks (again slightly) cooler to me at times despite the at least occasional predominance of pink tones. Fine detail is very good to excellent throughout this presentation, with elements like the almost palpable looking burlap on Sam's head looking precise. While there are no obvious signs of aggressive digital tweaking in terms of either DNR or edge enhancement, there are occasional compression issues where grain can look just slightly splotchy at times. These do tend to crop up expectedly in some of the darker moments, but aren't consigned solely to those moments.
Trick 'r Treat features DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and 2.0 mixes, while the old Warner release sported a Dolby TrueHD 5.1 track and no stereo offering. Both tracks offer excellent fidelity and rather wide dynamic range, but the surround track significantly opens up the placement of ambient environmental effects (as might be predictable, a lot of the film takes place outside during Halloween festivities) and perhaps especially with regard to Douglas Pipes' rather evocative score. As Ken noted in his review of the Warner release, things tend to be a bit front heavy quite a bit of the time, but there is engagement of the side and rear channels in some notable moments (outdoor scenes with revelers, the big schoolbus sequence), and Pipes' score resides quite winningly in the surround channels. Dialogue is always rendered cleanly and clearly and there are no problems with regard to age related wear and tear, distortion or other damage.
Shout! has ported over several pre-existing supplements from previous releases, while also upping the ante with some new bonus content. I've put an asterisk (*) after titles Shout! is explicitly advertising as new, though some that are apparently new aren't listed as such and so I'm mentioning those separately without an asterisk:
Trick 'r Treat rather smartly reinvents the venerable "horror anthology", and even if its intersecting stories may not make perfect sense in terms of an understandable chronology, most of the vignettes here have a definite "creepy" factor, and Dougherty's writing and direction are more often than not smart and enjoyable. Shout!'s technical presentation seems the equal more or less to the Warner release, with some minor variances that those interested can perhaps glean from comparing screenshots, but the supplemental package on this release is outstanding and may tip the scales in favor of this version for those who don't already own the title. Recommended.
2007
2007
Limited Edition
2007
Reissue with Lenticular Slip + It 2 Movie Cash
2007
Limited Edition
2007
Limited Edition
2007
Unrated Director's Cut
2006
2009
Director's Cut
1986
2016
1985
2012
2018
2016
2015
40th Anniversary Edition
1974
2011
2019
2015
Unrated Theatrical and Rated Versions
2013
2010
Director's Cut
2007
Unrated Director's Cut
2009
Evil Dead II: Dead by Dawn
1987
2011
Unrated Collector's Edition
2007