One of the hallmarks of a great label is their ability to diversify their catalog while maintaining a high level of quality with their releases. Labels like Vinegar Syndrome, Arrow Video, Severin, Synapse, Second Sight, and more have grown their businesses and viewership largely through this kind of commitment to putting out great films, of high quality, and with superior packaging. Even if you don’t love every single release, it can be hard to deny the time and effort put into making these releases so special for fans and collectors. The hardest part of growing this niche business is finding films that are available to release while simultaneously generating interest amongst viewers who may have never heard of a certain film or property. Sometimes that involves taking a risk by releasing something adjacent to the tastes of your core audience, and SOV powerhouse Visual Vengeance is quickly becoming the gold standard for these long-forgotten amateur films. Their newest release, The Wrong Door is a classic example of a label taking a chance on something just outside their wheelhouse. Is this a door you want to walk through, or is it better to pass?

WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

Ted Farrell has lived for mysteries and drama his whole life. While a college student he proves to be a sound designer with a knack for audio thrillers - but his life is about to imitate his art. Fate places him at the doorstep of a beautiful young woman who will soon end up murdered and in his car with no explanation. His night and his sanity quickly spiral out of control as he races to avoid becoming the next victim of the killer on the loose.

HOW IS IT?

One of the quotes on the back slipcover of The Wrong Door states, “A really good attempt to make a Brian DePalma-esque thriller.”, and candidly, this isn’t high enough praise. The Wrong Door isn’t just “DePalma-esque”, it is a wholly original and interesting film that deviates from the DePalma formula just enough to carve out its unique niche. It is a bold move from Visual Vengeance given this is far tamer and more grounded than the entirety of their release catalog thus far, and yet it may also be one of the most well-developed and crafted films the label has released.

Ted is an audio nerd and mystery junky who moonlights as a singing telegram actor in the evenings until one night he knocks on the wrong door on his way to a client and notices a woman who may be in danger. Not content to let this stand, Ted returns to the apartment after he completes his work to find the woman left for dead. What follows is a great example of the “one crazy night” genre as Ted is pursued by the murderers while simultaneously trying to figure out why this woman was killed. Erring more towards thriller than horror, The Wrong Door is delightfully intriguing in ways films with far larger budgets could only dream of. The viewer knows what Ted knows, and the more of this murderous onion that is peeled back reveals clever layers of mystery that will keep you guessing. A lot of what helps make The Wrong Door so entertaining is in the writing and the technical filmmaking aspects. Low-budget films often struggle to maintain coherence and consistency with storytelling, but The Wrong Door is surprisingly void of the kinds of plot holes you’d expect to find and instead is thoughtfully crafted to keep the audience on their toes. This is complimented by a brisk and reasonable 73-minute runtime which never overstays its welcome, efficient filmmaking at its finest.

One thing that sets The Wrong Door apart from most Visual Vengeance (VV) releases is that this one was filmed on Super 8mm, which gives the film a far more cinematic look despite a lower quality of print. While watching The Wrong Door you may find yourself wondering why the shots look so good and work so well with the film. This isn’t the amateur filmmaking you would come to expect and elevates the quality of the film by reducing the number of times the shoddy camera work takes you out to zero. Had a better quality of film stock and camera been used during production we would likely already be talking about The Wrong Door as a cult classic, and it doesn’t stop with the cinematography either. The score is perfectly fitting for the mood of the film with odd ambient sounds and synthy chords, all culminating in one helluva fun third act. Just think how would an audiophile use sound to “Home Alone” his pursuers. These details are not only clever but also relevant to how Ted as a character was established from the start. The Wrong Door is truly a hidden gem, even those who scoff at lower-quality source material like 8mm are likely to get a kick of what’s behind this wrong door.

HOW DOES IT LOOK?

As mentioned in the previous section, The Wrong Door was filmed in Super 8mm and thankfully the team at VV was able to secure the original film elements for their 2K restoration. That said, expectations should be checked accordingly since 8mm film, for those who aren’t aware, is not ideal given its limitations. Nevertheless, the cleanup work for this restoration is solid aside from some overly dark locations that make details hard to see. The Wrong Door has a fullscreen 1.33:1 aspect ratio and images from the film can be seen below and throughout the review.

HOW DOES IT SOUND?

The stereo audio track included is adequate and again requires some expectation setting for the uninitiated. The sound quality is likely the byproduct of the 8mm film rather than anything done by the VV team, and that isn’t to say it is bad, it is just okay. The dialogue is clear enough and if you have a hard time hearing there are English subtitles included as well.

ANYTHING SPECIAL?

VV continues to impress with the depth and passion behind their releases, especially the special features. Alongside the familiar collective slipcover, sticker pack, and odd piece of swag (in this case a door tag, how apt) is also a heap of newly commissioned commentaries, interviews, and even a 43-minute documentary about the making of the film. For this review we watched that documentary titled, Men Make Movie, If Not Million$. Including interviews with Directors Bill Weiss, Shawn Korby, James Groetsch, and Producer John Schonebaum along with star Matt Felmlee. This feature is so jam-packed with fun stories and information about the production, but the real stars are the people mentioned above. How they had a good concept for “what would happen if you got in your car and there was a dead body” and took it across every aspect of production while teaching themselves along the way. Their decision to shoot on film was a conscious one, and less a result of intention rather than necessity given the lower cost for production. The influences the filmmakers mentioned included Hitchcock and oddly enough, Michelangelo Antonioni. Interestingly enough this is the second time that filmmakers have referenced Antonioni as their inspiration for their work, the other being Messiah of Evil. One of the most captivating parts of the doc was how the team went about trying to get distribution, and how FilmThreat of all places was its savior in getting to home video. Alongside this excellent doc are heaps of additional interviews as well as a Director’s Cut of the film and some other super 8mm films. A full list of special features is below.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

Brand new director-supervised 2K HD transfer from the original Super 8mm film elements
Commentary with directors Bill Weiss and Shawn Korby
Commentary with director James Groetsch and producer John Schonebaum
New Documentary: Men Make Movie, If Not Million$
James Groetsch Interview
Shawn Korby Interview
Bill Weiss Interview
Actor Matt Felmlee Interview
Distributing The Wrong Door: Chris Gore Interview
Alternate Director’s Cut of The Wrong Door (2019)
Super 8 short: Raiders of the Lost Bark (1983)
Super 8 short: The Pizza Man (1988)
TV Episode: The Gale Whitman Show
Original unedited Muther Video VHS intros
Image Gallery
Original Storyboards Gallery
Film Threat Review
Now Hiring Trailer
The Wrong Door Trailer
Visual Vengeance Trailers
2-sided Insert
Collectible folded poster
Reversible Sleeve Featuring Original VHS Art
'Stick Your Own' VHS Sticker Set
Optional English subtitles
Region-Free Blu-ray

LAST RITES

The Wrong Door is one of the finest releases from Visual Vengeance and is a high recommended for collectors who enjoy a thoughtful thriller made by passionate people. Departing from their usual exploitation fare, Visual Vengenace has once again proved they always have something special up their sleeve.

THE GORY DETAILS

Thank you to the fine fiends over at MVD ENTERTAINMENT for providing a review copy for the crypt! The Wrong Door is available NOW and can be purchased via MVD DIRECT!

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Nov 4, 2020

Matthew Orozco