TUCKER AND DALE FINALLY ALLOWED TO FIGHT EVIL

I worry that this nearly two years of praise is going to leave the film over-hyped for some people, as happened with TRICK 'R TREAT. I really hope not, because it's an extremely well-done and very fun and funny film.

I don't entirely understand putting films on VOD a month before theaters. Shouldn't it be the same time? Seems like anyone dying to catch the film and planning to wait until it hits theaters will get antsy knowing its on VOD and eventually breakdown and watch it. I know I would.

So was this film all that highly acclaimed?  Don't get me wrong.  I really really enjoyed it when I saw it last year.  But I never really heard about it again.

Not really, which is sort of my point. Currently (in the horror community) it has become the big "How the fuck hasn't this been released yet!" film. That can snowball into overhype. It's not a masterpiece. It's just good ol' fun.

Yeah, I've got a buddy who really overhypes this thing to our friends who haven't seen it.  And, while I don't doubt that his enthusiasm is genuine, I'm worried he might be setting their expectations too high. 

It's nice to see some of the wild praise for this film get tempered here, but at the same time the trailer makes me giddy. Maybe they'll balance each other out and I'll remain about where I'm at in terms of anticipation for it.

I do get the unnerving sensation that some of the better deaths are spoiled by the footage, but maybe people who have seen it can weigh in on that. Either way, looks like some bloody fun. And Alan Tudyk.

Just watched that rough cut trailer.  Wow, it really does give away a lot of the kills.  Not everything, but jeez...

I think T&D's biggest success is tone. Most self-aware horror comedy fails on the tone level more than anything else -- either trying too hard for laughs, or going too campy. I once heard someone refer to T&D as the "American SHAUN OF THE DEAD" which doesn't really make sense whatsoever, other than they both succeed at their respective tones. So in that sense it is true. Spoiling the kills is a poor move for the trailer, indeed, though honestly that isn't what makes the film work. That's what made HATCHET "work," and we all know how HATCHET is viewed around these parts. The characters of Tucker and Dale are just really nice and fun to watch.

There are some pretty gaping plot holes in this but it works well for the most part. Josh is right that tonally the thing works like crazy. The charming leads help enormously. If there was any justice in the world, this is the movie that should replace SCARY MOVIE in the popular consciousness as the proper way to do horror satire.

That said, much love for Magnet, who is kicking all kinds of ass these days.

Yeah, I don't know why it's taken so long for T&D to find distribution, it's certainly better than a lot that's come out, but it's not some hidden masterpiece. The leads are very likable, it's shot well, it's got a wonderful tone, and it has some inventive kills, but it kind of blows its wad in the first half of the film and is only really saved in the second half by the charm of the actors. Minus the villain who's over the top bad, as opposed to over the top awesome.

And there must be some kind of PBR tie-in for this. I can see this as a staple of midnight showings for years, basically have a PBR with Tucker and Dale.

I made a Shaun comparison for its fine balance of gore and humor as well as the good friendship between the two leads.

So when is All the Boys Love Mandy Lane being released?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joshua Miller 

 

I don't entirely understand putting films on VOD a month before theaters. Shouldn't it be the same time? Seems like anyone dying to catch the film and planning to wait until it hits theaters will get antsy knowing its on VOD and eventually breakdown and watch it. I know I would.

One thing T&D has going for it is that it works great with an audience. I don't know if they were specifically aiming for a midnight movie, but it certainly works as one.