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17-year-old Eli has just moved with his family deep into the backwoods of Kentucky to work on the isolated farm of a local recluse. Inexplicably drawn into the strange forest that lies beyond the farm, Eli encounters the beautiful, sweet and mysterious Amanda, seemingly the perfect girl. But with the discovery of decaying bodies hanging from the trees, he realizes that the forest - and Amanda - are harboring some very dark secrets. Suddenly, Eli is living in a waking nightmare where the lines between life and death are scrawled in blood, and there is no escaping the terror from beyond the grave. Written by
Terry Hayes
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Eli (Spencer Daniels) and his father move to the farm of childhood friend Waylon (Brad Dourif). Eli is seemingly all alone, at least until he meets Amanda -- who is not all that she appears to be.
The biggest complaint I have on this title is the cover art on the DVD. While the poster is beautiful, for whatever reason the cover is instead a cheap image of a woman who looks like she is being kidnapped and tortured. Yet, despite the cover, this is not a horror film or anything involving torture. It is a sort of love story.
Not that horror fans will not enjoy it -- cult favorite Brad Dourif has a sizable role, and there are a few skeletons and some blood, so they might get that sinister grin at the corners of their lips. I entered into it expecting a horror film -- and while that was not what I saw, it is still a solid film.
The photography is excellent, and the story is for the most part your standard boy meets girl tale. There are some twists, and some interesting family tension. There is drama, there is mystery... I did not care for the actress playing Amanda (her voice seemed too childish), but overall everyone had that "everyman" quality that I feel is important in crafting an empathetic story.
I cannot get into it much more without spoilers, and I refuse to spoiler this film. Despite my rather low rating, it is not a bad film and worth checking out. I just wish they had used a different cover.