Review - Dead Birds

Dead Birds gave me nightmares all night long last night. Damn you, scary movie! I'd read a recommendation of the film over here, threw it on my queue, and lo and behold, it was a really terrific horror movie! Who knew they made 'em anymore? Sorry, I've been a little discouraged by horror lately, I haven't seen a flick that just really scared me in awhile. I was beginning to wonder if I'd numbed myself out of getting a scared reaction. But no! The circles around my eyes this morning attest differently!

Mind you, Dead Birds isn't a "monumental" perfect work of horror. It's a little too short, leaves a lot of questions dangling, and the ending doesn't altogether make sense, even once you pretty much figure out what they're trying to get at. But man, it's effective at building and sustaining a really strong atmosphere, the special effects and gore are used just right, and, surprise of surprises, the characters aren't stupid! They come across as real people, who've wandered into a terrifically awful place, and behave like I'd expect someone to behave in the situation. The film consistently sidesteps the cliched routes, and mines some sources of horror I've never seen mined before in quite the same way.

For example, to have one of the main protagonists be a black man during the Civil War and to have him be confronted with the possession of a house by a brutal slave-owner and -abuser, to witness visions of a black woman being eviscerated in the dark basement by an unseen presence... well, that's just really tapping into a a really deep well of horror I'd not experienced before.

There are all sorts of really wonderfully shot and framed nightmare-inducing visions to be had here. The cast is much stronger than I expected from these names, and the special effects were suprisingly good and effective. So yes, Dead Birds is a really solid scary movie! Yay!