review: OTIS

Warner  //  Buy from Amazon.com OTIS is a story of suburban America gone haywire. In the midst of a serial abductor/killer's rampage, a beautiful young teen, Riley Lawson (Ashley Johnson), goes missing. When her desperate parents, Will and Kate (Daniel Stern and Illeana Douglas), are contacted by her kidnapper, an insufferable FBI Special Agent (Jere Burns) takes charge of the case. But, from deep within the psychopathic subterranean world created by Otis (Bostin Christopher), Riley turns the tables on her tormentor, manages to escape and to contact her parents. Fed up with the tragi-comic inability of the FBI to find their girl, Will, Kate, and Riley's brother, Reed (Jared Kusnitz) decide to take matters - and justice - into their own hands. But when Otis's brother, Elmo (Kevin Pollak), shows up unexpectedly, the Lawsons find themselves mired in one of the more unusual and macabre consequences of vigilantism. Far from proclaiming 'Mission Accomplished,' the backed-in-a-corner Lawsons will further complicate their already deadly predicament with a surprising, unfortunate and frankly hilarious final choice. After sitting through the very dark and very twisted horror comedy "Otis" I have to say that I am genuinely impressed - it's not often nowadays that a film comes along that breaks new ground or introduces a new vantage point that hasn't already been milked to death in other films. "Otis" does just that. Whether you're looking for some deranged, psychopathic horror gore, or you want some absurd, groan-worthy comedy, "Otis" will deliver. As I'm much more the dark & twisted than the gory & disturbing, "Otis" manages to walk that fine line between the two, at least enough for me to enjoy without having to cover up my eyes. Truly original, entertaining, funny & unsettling, "Otis" stands on its own as a genuinely fantastic achievement, both in terms of entertainment value but also breaking whole new ground. Nice job, good fun. Video The film is presented in a 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer tht appears to be pretty decent, with nice coloring, but the overall softness of the presentation was noticeable (intentional?) Audio Good, solid Dolby 5.1 surround mix delivers the audio goods. Extras audio commentary w/ director & writer deleted & alternate scenes "The Twisted World of Otis" featurette "Otis Home Movie: Suite 16" movies trailers Closing Thoughts Twisted, twisted comedy + nice assortment of extras = sick fun for those of the right mindset!