Dead Birds (2004)

[shift]

I saw a trailer on this movie called "DEAD BIRDS"

It looks really good. It's release date is 3-15-05

http://www.hollywoodvideo.com/images/boxart/dvd/140381.gif

Plot: group of bank robbers find refuge inside an abandoned mansion. As the night wears on and a thunderstorm grows outside, each member of the group begins to have visions of the atrocities that occurred within the house.

--------IMDB Review------
I just watched the film at the Toronto international film festival (during the midnight madness screening), and I didn't know what to think going into the film.

So the plot goes like this. A bunch of civil war renegade/criminals rob some confederates for gold, and then venture to a hideout place (huge abandoned mansion) that was recommended by someone. But something is wrong with this place... something very wrong.

The movie is similar to the lines of an Evil Dead style horror film. People go into a house, something is wrong with the house. Many conventional elements happen within the film as well, and some interesting ideas come as well. There were some jumps, but unfortunately there could have been more, and it could have been more suspenseful with a bigger payoff.

The problem that I found with the film, was the character development. there was some substance with each character, but they didn't expand on much of it. They didn't expand too much of about the monster / villain the film either. It was kind of a let down. Defiently compared to another low budget horror film, that I just saw at the festival (Creep).

With such a low budget, the special effects were great. The film has a decent look to it and the music was fantastic. Overall, I had a good time, but if it was in a normal theater, it would be a huge let down

[shift]

Trailer can be seen here: http://videodetective.com/home.asp?PublishedID=761725

[VideoViolence]

I will be checking this one out.

[Katatonia]

A thunderstorm and an abandoned mansion, hmm...sounds really good fi it was made with a decent budget. I'll probably rent it when it comes out.

[shift]

I saw this trailer on another dvd movie I got called "Into the Sun" and this movie loooks damn good.

[Katatonia]

I rented this one last night, and I must say that I enjoyed it a lot. Henry Thomas (E.T.) has the lead, and I really didn't even recognize him at first with a beard.

This movie actually had a budget, was shot on film, has good actors, professional cinematography, superb production design, an effectively ambiguous music score, and most importantly...an interesting plot.

I enjoyed the fact that the entire movie takes place in the 1860's, and has that period atmosphere and mood to it. The deserted plantation mansion they use for much of the film really looked quite authentic. There is also a surprising amount of gore in the film, and some things in the plot are just way out there and never quite make too much sense. There's also quite a few genuine scares throughout the film. I'm still trying to figure out just what the end of the movie was all about...

[shift]

I just got done watching this gem last night.

If you are looking for some gore and want a couple of jumps then this Spook fest flick is what you need to watch.

I really did enjoy this one.

It's basically about 5 bandits in the 1800's that kills a crowd of soviet soldiers that are trying to deposit money in/at the bank. The bandits kill and rob them @ the bank. There was some great gore fest in the bank.

While the bandits head off w/ the gold they run into a old prarie home. Its filled with chills, frights and pure evil. This movie does not start off slow or end slow. Movie seems to have a great direction of story line and character build up. I really did enjoy it.

Sony released this GEM!

I rate it 4.5 out of 5.

I wish the ending could of been a little better.

[eric_angelus]

I really enjoyed it...I found it to be alot like Scarecrows, with a dash of Ju-on and Dog Soldiers...the ending kept it from being great, but overall I am glad that I bought it (blindly)...which I can't say about most recent straight to DVD titles.

[x666x]

Cool flick!

[Jamm]

I'm still not sure what the title has to do with the movie. From what I remember the only dead bird was the one the guy stepped on when they first got to the house

Overall though, it was good, though it took two viewings for some of the things to "make sense". Could be that by the time I'm usually watching a movie, it's so close to bed time that I'm too tired to pay as much attention as I should.

[shift]

I'm still not sure what the title has to do with the movie. From what I remember the only dead bird was the one the guy stepped on when they first got to the house

Overall though, it was good, though it took two viewings for some of the things to "make sense". Could be that by the time I'm usually watching a movie, it's so close to bed time that I'm too tired to pay as much attention as I should.


Yea the title we have to argue about, but the movie is a different story. There is also a very good written review at dvdtalk.com

[fceurich39]

will pass on this movie

[Katatonia]

will pass on this movie

Oh well, your loss! :D

[Spitfire]

The title "Dead Birds" is used in "the saying", you're a "dead bird," something you say before getting killed, (birds) being the characters . . . not that the movie is about birds that are dead. Just a thought.

[dmeister]

I thought this movie had a very Scarecrows-esque feel to it, which I liked quite a bit. As a matter of fact, the plotline was damn near identical. Since I was very disappointed with the Tobe-Hooper-Crap-Fest-That-Is-The-Toolbox-Murders, buying this little gem at the same time was at least some consolation.

dmeister

[fceurich39]

Oh well, your loss! :D
well i gave in and picked this up after reading alot of reviews i like it was an interesting movie glad i bought this although i still like toolbox murders way better

[tobaccoman]

Just rented this last night and watched it this morning. Pretty fuckin' sweet! The ending definitely lacked but wasn't horrible. I wanted to rent Toolbox Murders also, but they were all out so I grabbed Mulholland Dr. (since I hadn't seen it yet). I started to fall asleep towards the end of that one so I didn't really understand it, still enjoyable, definitely have to check these both out again before taking them back.

[maskull]

I guess I'll have to buy/rent this online. I live in a small town and no one has this movie. Maybe I'll take a trip into T.O. this weekend though to see if i can find it. I've been wanting to see it for a while now.

[Ash28M]

Just watched this tonight and loved it. If i knew it was this good i think i may have even put it up or at least mentioned it as a option in the best horror film of the decade so far poll. I actually enjoyed it more then toolbox, which I also enjoyed. If i found any fault in it, it would be that it had a few too many loud jump scares.

[shift]

Did I just watch the same film as everyone else? I did not really enjoy this movie.... Had they fixed a few things I would have agreed it was awsome, but it had to many problems and made me not enjoy the movie....

1. the audio was not synched up correctly... If you look at the peoples mouths it seems to be 1/4 sec off... maybe it's just my copy. Also in a couple scenes the volume seemed to drop to where I couldn't even hear it... Good example is when the guy and girl are laying in the bed and shes talking to him.

Anyone else have the audio problems?

The answer to your question is "NO"!.
I am telling you that, that 96" screen w/ the slow ass spin wheel on your X1 is tripping you out man. Or maybe from the other movies that rainbow effect from it fucked your eyes up from past movies. :lol:

No , but really, no problems here bubba.

[Ash28M]

Actually i did have synch problem with mine too with about 20min left for a couple of minutes and the audio was hard to hear in the scene where there lying in bed. Strange reason to not like the movie though.

[KamuiX]

There was a bit of off-sync stuff in the last 20 or so minutes of the film on my disc, but it was only at a few parts, and far from distracting.

As for the film, I thought it was a great. A very good atmosphere (felt a bit like Twilight Zone meets Silent Hill IMO) and an awesome story. The score was quite effective as well. For a straight-to-video flick, it was head and shoulders above the rest. It should have been released theatrically. The ending was very well done. I did feel that 30 or so minutes of the film DID drag a bit. I don't mind slow films at all, but I found myself telling this one to pick up the pace. But at the 45 minute mark, it did, and it never stopped. So I only fault it a bit in the pace department.

BTW, did anyone else notice this particular scene, which I caught immediately, but it sunk in with the ending.

When the leader of the group was walking downstairs about mid-movie, he walked by a window, and his reflection was that of the demon. Very subtle, with no sound cues, but really cool little moment, made even better with the ending.

[Katatonia]

Hmm... I really didn't notice any audio or sync problems when I watched the DVD.

[maskull]

I'm sitting here reading all the good comments about this flick, which I've been wanting to see since i read a little blurb on some internet site, and all I have to say is: I hate the long weekend! If it wasn't for the long weekend, the DVD from Zip.ca would be here already and I would've been able to watch it today! yeesh!
oh well, I picked up May (finally!) yesterday, so I can just re-watch that instead. :-)

[Jimbo]

Well with the positive feedback for the most part I might pick this up.Sounds interesting enough.

[soxfan666]

i just netflixed this movie and it was ok. I also had the sync problems for about the final 20 mins, so they must have fucked up and put out a shitty product.

[Ash28M]

For a straight-to-video flick, it was head and shoulders above the rest

I wouldn't call it a straight to video flick it played at the Tororto Film Fest along with a few other i'm sure.

[Criswell]

Sounds like a Star Trek episode.

[x666x]

I wouldn't call it a straight to video flick it played at the Tororto Film Fest along with a few other i'm sure.

That is where I saw it. Although admittedly, the audience was not too excited about the film while I thoroughly enjoyed. It was shadowed by SAW that year backed by the marketing machine that is Lion's Gate. The wrong film got all the attention.

[SaviniFan]

My copy had no audio problems at all. I'm wondering if perhaps only certain players have a problem with the DVD. I played it on my Philips DVP642 flawlessly.

[Mok]

I saw it and highly recommend this one guys. Great cinematography and atmosphere - no punches pulled on historic accuracy or gore.

Remember the "What do we want as horrror fans?" thread? I said the soundtrack needed to be good - keep that in mind when you watch this one.

[Ash28M]

I have a feeling this film is going to grow in popularity over time. Much like other films that came out of nowhere like Ginger snaps and Session 9.

[maskull]

I just finished watching this (btw no sound problems on this disc). I quite enjoyed it. good atmosphere, and nice creepy soundtrack, good acting, and not over-done..well, maybe a few too many "jump scares", I actually preferred the other parts when nothing jumped out. a real nice tense feeling throughout the whole movie. and i thought the ending was pretty decent too. and for those who said the movie was too slow moving, I totally disagree. they were just creating a good creepy atmosphere and I wasn't bored at any point in the movie.

definitely has potential to get a cult following.

[onebyone]

I watched this last night, and that it was good, but not great. The first 30 minutes, save one scene, were painfully dull. It really picks up after that, but the damage was done. Also, I didn't really care about the characters so some of the psychological horror fell a little flat. I think the character problem was more with the script than the direction. To make you care what happens to a bunch of bank robbing killers takes a better script than that imho.

That said, it was well shot, pretty well acted, and nice to look at. The director is very good at creating atmosphere and scares and has great potential to be a great horror director and I hope he gets more work. I am glad I saw it, I just doubt I will be watching it again.

[Jimbo]

I watch this yesterday.It put me to sleep within the first 30 minutes.So I had to start it over last night and rewatch the parts i missed.It was ok,not what some are cracking it up to be though.Cant say it is worth the $20 they want for it.

[dmeister]

I actually thought it was well-paced, but perhaps movies like this aren't for everyone. I, personally, appreciate a movie that makes an attempt to build suspense, as many of the greatest horror flicks have done. I certainly wouldn't call the first 30 minutes of Dead Birds "dull," but you can always throw in a movie with CGI vampires shooting at each other in bullet-time if you find that your attention span isn't holding up. ;)

dmeister

[onebyone]

I actually thought it was well-paced, but perhaps movies like this aren't for everyone. I, personally, appreciate a movie that makes an attempt to build suspense, as many of the greatest horror flicks have done. I certainly wouldn't call the first 30 minutes of Dead Birds "dull," but you can always throw in a movie with CGI vampires shooting at each other in bullet-time if you find that your attention span isn't holding up.

I appreciate movies that build suspense too. I just don't think the first 30 in this movie built much. I wasn't feeling the suspense at any rate. For me, building suspense has to involve making me care, and it didn't. I am not saying I hated the movie though. I give it 3/5 stars.

Also, if you are by any means implying that I am the kind of person who would like Underworld, think again, as I hated that movie with a passion. I just wanted to clear that up.

[dmeister]

Hey, I'm not pointing any fingers here. ;)

dmeister

[Mok]

For me, building suspense has to involve making me care, and it didn't.

For some reason, whenever Henry Thomas is in a film, I automatically care about him.

[BloodMan]

Saw this recently. It was alright I guess. Some good gore, good atmosphere too. But... its just... I mean... that thing that happens in the first 15 minutes or so... in the field... if you saw that, wouldn't you kinda like... walk away from there.
It was alright though. Nothing that will be remembered in 5 years. :)

[Myron Breck]

Seeing how poorly the horor genre has been represented in recent years, I think this will become a bit of a minor classic. It won't take much to be remembered fondly.

[Hellbilly]

Much better than Fort Doom ;)
Had some good tense moments but once the flashy MTV-style editing began (flashback sequence) I was a bit disappointed. Still enjoyed the movie though, we need more Western-horror flicks.

[Katatonia]

Much better than Fort Doom ;)
Had some good tense moments but once the flashy MTV-style editing began (flashback sequence) I was a bit disappointed. Still enjoyed the movie though, we need more Western-horror flicks.

Just don't rent Blood Trail. A 1996 movie released to DVD by Lions Gate...very boring, and I love westerns!

[dmeister]

Just don't rent Blood Trail.

Somebody needs to take that movie out to the pasture and shoot it like a lame animal.

dmeister

[indiephantom]

Somebody needs to take that movie out to the pasture and shoot it like a lame animal.

dmeister

:lol:

[IGotsNewShoes]

Watched this movie tonight and really enjoyed it. I thought it had great atmosphere and some scares that actually made me jump.

I also noticed Henry Thomas' characters reflection in the window being a monster...at first I thought is was just there for a scare, but then when the end of the film happened I was like Whoa..now it makes sense.

[sinister]

I watched this on Friday night and thought it was awesome, one of the best horror movies I've ever seen. For me, it was just perfect... I can't remember any other movie that kept such a high level of tension from beginning to end.

The attention to detail in creating the soundtrack was amazing as well, every little noise and effect was spot on (I'd say a good 5.1 or better sound system is essential to really appreciate this movie), lighting and photography were brilliant, acting (mostly) very good and the few "jump" scenes were truly nightmare inducing material.

Before I even looked through the rest of this thread I knew Ash28m would love this flick as well (of everyone on here I think his taste in horror is most similar to my own) and I totally agree with him that this has to be a candidate for best horror movie of the decade, for me it's definitely the best modern horror flick since BWP. Will be interesting to see how it stands up to multiple viewings though.

[KingJeff]

I got to see this Friday night in a movie theater (in Boston at the Independent Film Festival). It was really intense. Sounded great in the theater and I'm not sure if the atmosphere would transfer over well to a home theater setting. People were screaming at some of the jump points. It was a lot of fun.

[Tawny]

I thought it was pretty scary, except the demon faces did get old after a while. It was just the same old scare. And what was the ending all about? I am still confused about that.

[IGotsNewShoes]

My take on the ending Tawny is this:

The father was using black magic to try to cure his wife, sacrificing slaves and all that junk. Something went wrong and everyone within the house started turning into those demon things, which is why he took his kids and did god knows what with them (because they had changed as witnessed in the visions the criminals had of them). The townspeople hung the father up on the scarecrow cross before he could do anything to reverse the evil he'd unleashed. So anyone who wonders into that house is changed into one of those demons...I believe from the first minute they stepped into the door they were transformed, they were just unaware. Like I said in the previous post if you watch the scene closely where Henry Thomas is looking for Clyde upstairs, when he passes the window his reflection is a demon. Weird I know but that's what I got out of it. And when we see Henry Thomas run out of the corn at the end we are seeing him how he thinks he is, but the soldiers see him as he truly is now...a demon.

Hope that didn't confuse you more.

[b0nkers]

watched this last night. was ok but when it ended it felt like there was no point to it.

btw what happened to the gold. it just seem to vanish with no reason

[Tawny]

Thanks Shoes, that's kind of what I was thinking, I just was not sure exactly when did everybody change into a demon? Was it when they entered the house, after they saw one of the demons, or when they died?

[IGotsNewShoes]

Thanks Shoes, that's kind of what I was thinking, I just was not sure exactly when did everybody change into a demon? Was it when they entered the house, after they saw one of the demons, or when they died?

I think that they were changed as soon as they entered the house, so they really had no chance of escaping. Cause as the two army guys at the end were walking through the cornfield and came upon Henry Thomas' girlfriend they commented on her as if she were a monster too. And since Henry Thomas hadn't died before his reflection in the window was a demon it had to have happened before they died. And those two army guys at the end who went in looking for the rest of the gold were probably gonna be changed as well...greedy bastards :)

[wizzer]

bahh. to much thinking and formulating to do here. i think it kinda sucked. it had a few good scares but the ol' demon face kids got used up quick. and whats the deal with both parties shooting these demons and then just dismissing it as, hmmmm, what the hell is this some sort of uhhh wild bore?? and also, where did the gold go?

[IGotsNewShoes]

Watching this movie again tonight with commentary to get a better grasp of what was going on but my belief is that:

The house made the gold disappear to make the soldiers turn on each other...Henry Thomas' character didn't have the gold yet when the soldiers shot him as a demon there were pieces of gold near him to lure the soldiers to the house.

[wizzer]

The house made the gold disappear.


:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

i think you're starting to give this movie way too much credit.

[IGotsNewShoes]

Actually I'm starting to think I'm the only one who got what the director was going for....:(

[wizzer]

i reckon so. they just ain't makin' the run o' the mill horror pic-i-ture for the average joe these days. these new fangled movies are much too confuzin.

[Mok]

bahh. to much thinking and formulating to do here. i think it kinda sucked. it had a few good scares but the ol' demon face kids got used up quick. and whats the deal with both parties shooting these demons and then just dismissing it as, hmmmm, what the hell is this some sort of uhhh wild bore?? and also, where did the gold go?

I liked that idea. It's unexpected yet believable that Civil War soldiers would be naieve about finding weird shit like that. They aren't the Scooby-squad, they're low-educated soldiers and bank robbers. It's refreshing. As for the gold, I didn't realize it went anywhere - wasn't it still in the house?

Also, I don't think it matters when they turned into demons.

[maskull]

i think IGotsNewShoes has the right idea about the ending. though i think they can't have turned into demons right away because one of them went out to tend to the horses and they didn't freak out. horses would probably tend to be scared of a demon. they're afraid of everything! i figured they just started to turn bit by bit, the longer they were in the house. they can't have turned into demons when they died because the dog attacks HT's character when he's out in the cornfield at the end. it must have seen his demon body and attacked him for that, not recognizing HT.
anyway I could have done without the multiple jump scares. especially the faces...but I still really liked the movie.

[Katatonia]

I finally got around to actually buying this one. Saw one in the $5.50 bin at Wal-Mart, but doubted it was that cheap already. I scanned it on one of those customer price scanners and it turned out to be only $9.44. Not a bad price at all...but I didn't see any others!

[Criswell]

You know.........I watched it again last night, and it's really not that good.

It's a very poor mix of:

The Ring
The Grudge
Scarecrows
Killing Birds
The Beguiled
Pet Cemetary

and too many others.

Really and honestly..........none of it aside from the original curse made much sense

[tobaccoman]

Damn, I would love to find this flick for only $10, they're trying to weasel out $20+ everywhere I've looked here.

[Katatonia]

Damn, I would love to find this flick for only $10, they're trying to weasel out $20+ everywhere I've looked here.

Yeah no kidding, I was shocked. The DVD's price was the main reason I waited so long to buy it, hoping it would go lower. I guess Wal-Mart wanted to get rid of their stock and slashed the price.

[Peter Vincent]

Me & the sis rented this on a whim...I hadn't fallen asleep watching a movie whether in the theatres or at HOME in a long time 'til this one. I found myself dozing not once but TWICE!

I WILL say that I loved the concept. Plus the time period it was set is very different than most horror fare as of late. But the scene with Isaiah Washington walking around investigating a noise in the house....Zzzzzzzzz.....

[dwatts]

Add me to the "price is everything" group. I have not seen this for less than $20 yet either, and I won't pay that.

Actually, as we all know, buying over the net saves us both time and money - and the selection is better than the high-street stores too. However, since I am only in the US briefly this time around, I am doing most of my shopping in bricks and mortar, and it's disapointing to see prices creeping upward. A lot of the newer asian films getting a release seem to be at a premium too.

On the plus side, the secondhand outfits are jam-packed with left over titles. Ridiculous, and I'm once again travelling home with 50+ titles.

[bigdaddyhorse]

I finally got to see this yesterday and thought it was really good.
Yeah it got slow in parts but was far better than most "horror" movies of late.

[dwatts]

I finally got this one. I bought it ex-rental for $10 from Hollywood Video.

Anyway, for me it was a "knock it out of the park" ten out of ten. An absolute blast to watch. The amount of tension generated in the film was terrific. Actually, I am struggling trying to find something negative to say about it.

I really don't understand why there is disapointment at the ending, or why there are questions about at which point they turned. It all ssemed rather obvious to be honest.

The story is nothing new - but if they continue to reqork things with this level of effectiveness, then I'm all for it. Excellent flick - yes, even at the $20 I refused to pay for it.

[thrashard76]

By the way, all the Walmarts in my area have now reduced this title to $9.44. Time for me to get a copy of my own.

[maskull]

I've been waiting for this one to drop in price. Not because I'm unwilling to pay $20 for it, but because you just know it'll end up in the cheapie bins. If it didn't drop in price, I probably would've paid full price for it anyway.

Unfortunately, I've become quite cheap lately as I have very limited money now.

[tobaccoman]

Usually I'm all for giving up my money to the little people so that they can make more movies, but lately I've been trying to catch some movie that I'm fearing will go OOP soon. Otherwise I'd have coughed up the $20+ for this one, for sure.

[Vlachio]

I got this for $5 at FYE. It was used of course. Great very well made creepy film!