COLLECTOR'S CRYPT - BECKY (RONIN FLIX BLU RAY)
What makes a “good” horror movie? The subjective nature of opinions makes creating baselines for assessing quality extremely difficult, and the question is not asking for objective facts like what makes a “financially successful” horror movie. A saying goes “one person’s trash is another person’s treasure”, and that idiom could not hold more true for horror films. Much like other aspects of our broader society's opinions on horror films, especially newer ones, seem more divided than united with the occasional exception abounding. Not everyone needs to agree on everything, but the hot/cold nature of how we react to films today seems to drive a wedge between us and the entertainment we actively seek to spend time with. I guess what I’m saying is, not every horror movie has to be “the best” or “the worst”. In fact, most of them are just fine even if not everyone is great. We should be asking ourselves the immortal question that Russell Crowe did in GLADIATOR, “are we not entertained?”. And in this edition of the Crypt, we take a gander at the “HOME ALONE” inspired BECKY. Starring KEVIN JAMES, LULU WILSON, and JOEL McHALE and recently released on BLU RAY from RONIN FLIX, is this an entertaining horror homage or something worthy of the horror community’s ire?
WHAT’S IT ABOUT?
A teenager's weekend at a lake house with her father takes a turn for the worse when a group of convicts wreaks havoc on their lives.
HOW IS IT?
The older I get the more of an expert I become in my own opinion. As pompous as that may sound, it’s just another way of saying I become more aware of what I do and do not enjoy. This doesn’t mean that I’m less open to things as much as it means I am more in tune with what I’m trying to get out of what I’m watching. The great thing about a lot of horror movies is that they are not for thinking. They are meant to provide escapist entertainment that terrifies, excites, and above all, entertains. BECKY is a prime example of an extremely well-made and straight-to-the-point horror movie with enough heart for you to care about the characters, and enough brutality to keep you on the edge of your seat.
To say that BECKY is “Home Alone in the woods” is not entirely accurate. While we have a child protagonist facing a group of skinhead convicts, the family is still in the equation. What starts off as a rather melodramatic father/daughter trip quickly turns into a hostage situation as Dominick (KEVIN JAMES) and his crew of Nazi tagalongs raid a families cabin in search of a hidden treasure, or something that they need a key for. It’s kind of unclear what exactly they are using that key for, and there is no allusion to it being anything supernatural. The thing is, I don’t really need to know the specifics of that for this story and rightly the filmmakers don’t waste time on needless scenes of background. One of the best things BECKY does is that it wastes no time. Within the first 20 minutes, you’re in the thick of the story with just the right amount of setup to get you going. From that point on the film is extremely well-paced, far better than most movies generally speaking these days. There is just the right amount of action, drama, and violence to keep you engaged for the full 94 minutes. I often use the “phone check” test to gauge how well a movie is paced. The sooner, and more often, I check my phone (I keep it face down out of arm's reach to avoid natural temptation) tends to mean the pacing is off and/or the movie is boring. Neither of those things can be said about BECKY.
Part of what makes BECKY so entertaining is a mixture of outstanding, and surprising, performances paired with brutality and tension. While some may find the portrayal of the titular character to be a bit grating, I think it helps with her arc to have her begin as a depressed brat and then blossom into a traumatized survivor. A lot of credit goes to LULU WILSON for pulling off the innocence alongside the insidious. The most surprising and revelatory performance belongs to KEVIN JAMES. If you’re like me, that name is synonymous with KING OF QUEENS and PAUL BLART. Continuing a long tradition of comedic actors turning in outstanding dramatic performances, James is completely transformed into the gang leader, Dominick. While it’s tempting at first to chuckle when you see him, once you see the ruthlessness that he brings to this character you’ll have a newfound respect for his chops to be sure. The entire cast is quite good, and they really are the foundation of this simple, yet well-executed story. I’d be hard-pressed to agree with anyone that didn’t like this movie, even if it doesn’t push the genre’s boundaries, it is a pristine example of simplicity done well.
HOW DOES IT LOOK?
BECKY was released in 2020, so it comes to blu ray in 2023 not in need of much tidying in the A/V department. Produced by REDBOX ENTERTAINMENT the look and feel are very much on par with other streaming services in terms of overall visual quality. RONIN FLIX brings us the film in 1080p HD with the original widescreen aspect ratio of 2.39:1. The film takes place in a handful of locations, some indoor and outdoor, and has minimal use of CG effects making the practical ones the star of the show. You can see images from the film used throughout this review and seen below:
HOW DOES IT SOUND?
Much like in the visual department, given the newness of the production overall the soundtrack follows in kind with two separate audio tracks to choose from, a 5.1 Surround Sound DTS-HD track or a 2.0 Stereo DTS-HD track. For this review, I opted for the 5.1 track and was really impressed with the way they took advantage of the ambient forest noises for the back channels as well as making the film come through and engulf you to heighten the tension. There aren’t a lot of explosive situations (literally speaking) so most of the action is reserved for up close and personal fighting as well as the occasional gunshot. All in all, it’s a great soundtrack and it also comes with subtitle options for the hearing impaired.
ANYTHING SPECIAL?
One of the trends I’ve noticed for newer films (2020-present) that get physical media releases is that they often have noticeably fewer special features than they used to. When DVDs hit the scene, one of the main draws to the format aside from A/V improvements was the ability to tack on supplemental features. Even recent marvel releases feel woefully absent of table stakes features like an audio commentary. Thankfully, RONIN FLIX’s release of BECKY is perfectly complimented with a generous amount of additional material to enjoy. I started with Two Heads are Better than One: Directing Becky. This 40-minute interview was split between the film’s co-directors, JONATHAN MILOTT and CARY MURNION as they shared how they began working together and how they adopted a default rhythm of directing together and not solo. It’s an interesting interview about the nature of collaboration and how finding the right partner is more important than just any partner. They talk a lot about the film’s journey to production and how various folks became attached. As to be expected, the parts where they talk about how Kevin James got involved are of specific interest since it’s always curious to know how comedic actors find ways to do breakout roles.
The next feature I took in was The Fight of her Life with Lulu Wilson. This 14-minute interview with the film's titular star and the protagonist was quite interesting given how young she was when she was attached. More of note is that she was one of the first actors attached and really wanted to do this script, which also meant she waited for the longest for them to finally get all the other pieces in place. While the interview doesn’t reveal too much aside from the norm, it is always intriguing to learn more about the child actor experience. In particular how they have to split time between school and work, and how that impacts filming. The full list of the special features included on the disc is listed below:
Film introductions from directors Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion
Two Heads are Better than One: Directing Becky with Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion
No Laughing Matter with Joel McHale
The Fight of Her Life with Lulu Wilson
Fan Art and Behind-the-Scenes Photo Galleries
Audio Commentary with actress Lulu Wilson and screenwriters Ruckus and Lane Skye
5.1 Surround & 2.0 Stereo Lossless DTS-HD Master Audio
1080p High Definition Widescreen Presentation (2.39:1)
English Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
Limited Edition Slipcover & Reversible Sleeve (First Run Only)
LAST RITES
BECKY is like horror-thriller comfort food in that it hits the right spot without being overly complex or thought-provoking. Opting to leverage outstanding performances over absurdity, this bloody and entertaining thrill ride makes an excellent addition to the discerning collector’s shelves if not for Kevin James’ performance alone!
THE GORY DETAILS
Thank you to the fine fiends at MVD ENTERTAINMENT for providing a review copy of BECKY for the crypt. BECKY is available NOW via MVD DIRECT and RONIN FLIX DIRECT!
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