When I first saw Sam Raimi's 1981 horror opus 'The Evil Dead', I was completely enthralled and amazed at how well it was made, despite the bad acting and dirt on the image itself. Come to find out, Raimi set out to make a fun, bloody, and truly terrifying horror movie with his friends in college on a shoe string budget. Everyone involved mostly provided double duty-work to get the picture made, and it seemed to be a fun summer at camp with friends, more than a movie studio trying to turn out a main-stream movie.
I'm sure there are a lot of us out there who love to make movies with our friends and daydream of making a ton of money with your filmmaking effort. Very few actually get to say they made a feature length film, let alone have it released by a movie studio. Well, Tyler Glodt got to see that dream realized with his homage to 80's horror with his zombie film 'Buck Wild'.
You will definitely see how much Raimi, John Carpenter, and 'The Evil Dead' have impacted Glodt's life, as there are tons of references and homages paid to their iconic movies. Packed with rednecks, zombies, beer, blood, and a wild Chupacabra, you can expect loads of laughs and plenty of gross out moments, all set in my home state of Texas.
A group of three friends plus an odd cousin travel to Buck Wild ranch run by the insane Clyde and his nympho daughter Candy. The purpose of the ranch is to camp, hunt, and get drunk, which these four friends plan on doing, however early on, one of them learns some unsavory information about his girlfriend and best friend doing something behind his back. Soon enough, the four friends realize that Clyde is more than just off his rocker, he's certifiably insane.
To make matters worse, a gang rolls into the ranch to start trouble. But then things really hit the fan when the townspeople and gang start turning into mad, bloodthirsty zombies, leaving our four friends fighting for their survival. Glodt uses a mix of slapstick comedy and horror to make this zombie film work, with some outrageous moments that teeter on being over-the-top and horrific. It's a good mix and is well executed with fun camera movements and angles, as well as some solid performances by its actors.
The gore will make any fanboy giddy, with buckets of blood throughout, and the laughs come in waves. 'Buck Wild' is what indie filmmaking is all about. it has that certain amount of passion and talent that pull together a group of people that are on the same page, making the same movie, that eventually turn out a great product that everyone can be proud of, even if it features guts and nudity. This film is quite a bit of fun and is worthy of space on your shelf for you horror fans.
'Buck Wild' comes with a 1080p HD transfer presented in 2.39:1 aspect ratio. Due to the low budget of the production, this transfer isn't as good as it could be. That being said, for a fun horror flick done on the cheap, it gets the job done. You just can't expect the same quality that you would receive from a top movie studio. The colors don't always pop off-screen, as they seem a bit muted from scene to scene. When the red blood flows, it isn't as bright as I'd like to see it, given this is a horror comedy of sorts. Skin tones also seem a little paler than normal. The black levels run deep and inky though.
The detail is mostly sharp, but wanders into the softer category every now and then. Closeups reveal finer detail, but not as vivid as I've seen before. You won't be able to make out individual hairs too often here. This all being said, you're not really watching this movie to look out for imperfections in the video. Rather you are here to have a good time watching people make a schlocky zombie movie full of blood and laughs. And despite some of the heavier video noise that creeps up here and there, this video presentation gets the job done.
This release comes with a lossless Dolby TrueHD 5.1 audio mix which is very underwhelming. Perhaps due to the tiny budget, the dynamic sound this highly entertaining movie deserved, was not available. When I watch a zombie film that has growls, explosions, and gun shots, I expect a certain standard from my speakers and sound design fro the movie. Needless to say, that standard was not met here. The sound effects are just not up to snuff. The gun shots, zombie bites, growls, roars, hits, kicks, takedowns, and a big explosion do not sound full nor do they pack a small punch. Instead it just sounds like a blip and not realistic.
That being said, they do play in the surrounds often, but just not loud or robust like it should for this type of film. The dialogue is clear and easy to understand, and well-balanced in the center channel. The score and music are quite fun too here and never drown out any dialogue. There weren't any pops, cracks, or hissing that I noticed either. You'll be able to distinguish all of the noises and sounds, but will it fully immerse you in the situation? No it won't.
Deleted Scenes (HD, 3 mins.) - There are three deleted scenes in total that don't add a whole lot to the story.
Trailers (HD, 8 mins.) - Trailers for other films.
By no means does 'Buck Wild' change the game in the zombie genre. In fact, you've probably seen all of these situations and zombie kills before, but what this fun film has going for it is the passion of the filmmakers and actors. You can really tell that the chemistry between everyone was at an all-time high and that a group of friends who wanted to make a fun and gory horror movie, set out to accomplish just that. The result is a well-made and highly entertaining midnight movie you can enjoy with your own buddies. One that might inspire you to make your own horror movie one day. The video and audio presentations are barely passable, and there is only one extra. My suggestion is that if you're a fan of the zombie genre and of what Sam Raimi did in the 80s with 'The Evil Dead', then you should definitely pick this movie up. If not, then this is definitely worth a rental.
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