John Dies At The End: Blu-ray Review
The Movie:
John (Rob Mayes) and Dave (Chase Williamson) are two friends that live somewhere in the Midwest. After a night of partying John takes a new drug called Soy Sauce and has a bad trip causing his senses to be heightened. Now he can see creatures, voices and things that haven’t even happened yet. He immediately calls Dave over to his apartment to help him. The end result is Dave accidentally sticking himself with the syringe of Soy Sauce and this leads them both down a road filled with death, demons and alternate realities. Now they are unknowingly on a path to stop the end of the world all while trying to figure out just what the hell is going on.
Very seldom does a movie come along that blends two different genres together ever so perfectly. The horror and comedy balance each other out and it doesn’t feel like one is overpowering the other. The overall best way to describe this film woulds be Ghostbusters and Supernatural meet Jay and Silent Bob. I know, crazy right? It works so well though. Director Don Coscarelli really was the perfect match for this film and I don’t see how anyone else could’ve pulled it off quite like this. The pace of the film was great and the quick cuts during some of the “trip out” moments made for some really cool scenes. Williamson and Mayes play their respective roles with slacker like qualities but in a way that doesn’t make them seem like complete losers. Williamson had it down 100%. What made his performance so good was his “unsure” delivery of his lines and facial expressions. To me he’s the epitome of an underdog that doesn’t even know half of what’s going on and that’s what made it even more entertaining than it already was. Mayes’ John had this idiocy you just couldn’t help but laugh at. His laid back demeanor (for the most part) reminded me of a modern day Spicoli without the over the top surfer talk. A lot of the film’s creature effects were practical which was nice. It kind of takes it back to the old school days of horror where CG wasn’t relied on. I really hope that this isn’t the last that we see of these characters because I can see the potential of so many different stories about these guys. With a world that has been built on alternate realities and paranormal happenings there can plenty of possibilities to explore. This one gets a Seal of Approval from Cinema Deviant.
Special Features:
Deleted Scenes -There’s a few deleted scenes included and to me they should’ve been kept in. They aren’t crucial to the film but it wouldn’t have hurt it though.
Getting Sauced: The Making of John Dies At The End – Cast and crew talks about their experiences with the film. Sometimes these “Making Of’s” can be a bit mundane but it’s interesting to see Coscarelli’s directing style. What intrigued me the most was that for the most part he kept the camera rolling despite a flubbed line or missed cue.
Creature Corps: The Effects of Soy Sauce -Nice feature that shows some of the effects team’s practical effects for the film.
Casting Sessions -Some pretty cool auditions of Williamson and Mayes.
The bottom line is that this is a really awesome release with a good amount of special features that definitely make this purchase worthy.
John Dies At The End is available NOW on Blu-ray and DVD from Magnolia Home Entertainment and Magnet Releasing
