Blackwoods (2002)

User Rating:

2.4/10   

Director:

Uwe Boll

Writers:

Robert Dean Klein (written by) and
Uwe Boll (written by)

Genre:

Thriller | Drama

Tagline:

Tried... Convicted... HUNTED!

Plot:

Matt is haunted by the death of a girl from a car accident he caused years ago. Matt was drunk and as he reached for the car radio...

Plot Keywords:

Guilt | Car Accident | Motel | Backwoods | Flashback Sequence

Cast

Patrick Muldoon	...	Matt Sullivan
Keegan Connor Tracy	...	Dawn / Molly
Will Sanderson	...	Jim
Michael Paré	...	Sheriff Harding
Clint Howard	...	Greg / Motel Clerk
Anthony Harrison	...	Tall Man / Dr. Kelly
Matthew Walker	...	Pa Franklin
Janet Wright	...	Ma Franklin
Sean Campbell	...	Jack Franklin
Ben Derrick	...	John Franklin
Michael Eklund	...	Billy / Man
Samantha Ferris	...	Waitress / Beth
Patricia Dahlquist	...	Mrs. Sullivan
Kate Robbins	...	Housekeeper / Paula
Nathaniel DeVeaux	...	Doctor (as Nathaniel Deveaux)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence, language and sexuality.

Runtime:

USA:90 min

Country:

Canada | Germany

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

DTS

Certification:

Netherlands:16 | Germany:16 | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

Boll Kino Beteiligungs GmbH & Co. KG

Goofs:

Continuity: When Matt is spying on Dawn and her family, the initial camera shot from outside the home displays Matt on the right side of the window. However, once the camera changes to a position inside the home, he is shown on the opposite (left) side of the window. The camera then shifts to show the family, and when Matt is almost caught for making a noise he is back on the original (right) side of the window again.

Soundtrack:

If You Really Want Me

Smart-ish straight to video thriller fodder.

A while back I read an interview with Uwe Boll saying how his early non-video-game-adaptation movies are better and people should watch them as well before judging him. I've done both, and I have to say Uwe Boll makes no bad calls any other straight-to-video filmmaker wouldn't either, he's just much more high-profile thanks to his video-game franchise licenses. He isn't a bad director, but he's not one of the best either. Blackwoods is a case in point. It's an entertaining, solid movie, but it has problems, namely confusing writing and an end that comes suddenly and explains everything in five minutes flat.

Blackwoods constantly refers via flashback to a horrible car crash that the main character has before the start of the movie, where a woman is accidentally killed. It constantly drops hints that 'sumthin' ain't right' with the main guy Matt, but doesn't really have any exposition till the closing minutes. While this keeps the pace brisk, it does mean that you feel a little left out of proceedings.

Also, the cast lay their 'you ain't from around here is ya boy' routine on a little thick. If Clint Howard had acted any stranger I would have started to expect Jeremy Beadle to hop out from behind a TV set during the motel segment. Given that Boll actually does a good job of developing an uneasy atmosphere for the movie, it seems unfortunate that he also got his actors to really turn up the 'weird dudes' knob. It kind of cheapens the effective direction a little.

Still, despite it being quite confusing at times, and having some fairly odd, unnecessarily nuanced acting (not bad, just really strange), Blackwoods is an entertaining film. The storyline is intriguing, and the way it's fed to you is quite gripping. Unlike Boll's House of the Dead, his other film I've seen, which is non-stop stupidity (though I hasten to add, that's good stupid not bad stupid), Blackwoods is quite intelligent and well put together. It's worth a shot, don't expect a miracle, but give it a try, you could enjoy it a lot.