See No Evil DVD: Review By Dodd

Well, this truly is the season to be jolly. It is that time of year to hang the stockings, place ornaments on the tree, give gifts to the ones we love, and pop in a DVD about a professional wrestler picking kids off in an abandoned hotel. Alright, so the last one may not fit in with the "Bing Crosby canon" of a traditional white Christmas. However, late November showed the release of See No Evil on DVD. With this DVD cracking into the Top 10 DVD sales in its first week, it is obvious that some horror and wrestling fans will be expecting this in their stocking this year. So what better way to bring in the Christmas spirit than a review of the gory thriller?

In the spirit of Friday the 13th, See No Evil begins by introducing us to a group of misfits that we know are going to die. In order to make us more comfortable with their deaths, these young characters are presented with sinful flaws. Simply making them have sex with one another would not be effective enough since sex has become more and more widely accepted amongst young people since the 1980's. Therefore this group of youngsters are juvenile delinquents that have been prosecuted for theft, drugs, aggravated assault, etc. To lose a month of their sentence, they are forced to perform community service by cleaning the old, abandoned Blackwell Hotel. With their baggies of weed concealed, these troublemakers are ready for the time of their lives. This is until a secret guest at the hotel has ulterior motives.

Meet Jacob Goodnight (Kane)! Mr. Goodnight is a religion-obsessed, brutal murderer who stands at over seven feet, and whose skull is so thick that it even withstood a bullet from a cop four years prior. Concealed behind the walls of the Blackwell Hotel, Jacob is determined to punish all sinners. With criminals in his midst, it is his lucky day. Let the gratuitous slaughtering begin!

When seeing films such as this it is important to recognize its motives. It is an ultra-violent exercise in horror that asks us to revel in deaths of characters we are not supposed to care about. I will even admit to letting out the occasional snicker in prior slasher films when stereotypically mean or stupid teenagers are picked off in creative ways. Unfortunately, there is something about See No Evil that blocks this sense of enjoyment. While many of the characters are intentionally made to be unlikable, the violence almost forces the audience to recognize it as camp, when it is really unnecessarily brutal. One drawn-out sequence has Kane grinning goofily while he jams a cell phone into a girl's larynx. Plus, with every victim, we are forced to watch him pluck the eyeballs from his victims with his razor-sharp fingernails. This isn't necessarily too disturbing. It simply wears thin.

The fact of the matter is that See No Evil is intended to pump the adrenaline in wrestling fans. The star of this movie is Kane. While he does not mutter a word, his intimidating stance is just as powerful here as it probably is in the wrestling ring. The camera just can't get enough of his powerful stance. Every time he finds a victim, we are forced to watch him pick up that person and throw he or she into a wall or a ceiling as if they are lightweight rag dolls. While at first mildly funny, the focus on Kane's physical prowess grows thin. This reliance on non-verbal performance also reflects that Kane trying to speak may ruin the movie even more.

Commentary

Believe it or not, this disc contains two commentary tracks. The first is with former porn director Gregory Dark, and writer Dan Madigan. Being that I couldn't take this film seriously, I expected camp from this track. However, these guys speak so seriously as if they created a stone-cold, serious thriller. Unless you found the film to be a legitimate thriller, I wouldn't bother with this one. The second track is with Kane and executive producer Jed Blaugrund. Kane opens the track by explaining that Jacob Goodnight is an extension of himself, as Blaugrund awkwardly introduces himself after that. There are some quiet moments here as Blaugrund feeds Kane some questions to keep things flowing. However, the two of them speak so seriously about the film as in the first track. I say relax and recognize that this film isn't scary, but gratuitously campy at best.

Do You See the Sin?

This is a 12-minute featurette that talks about the conception of the idea. Director Dark explains that he wants to evoke conventions from 1970's/1980's horror, and create the next Leatherface and/or Jason. The featurette actually presents the film as something more enjoyably edgy than it really is. One enjoyable aspect of this is how the filmmakers explain the irony of the film's death scenes.

Kane: Journey into Darkness

This two-minute bit is a bow to wrestler fans that refers to Kane's existence in the WWE world, and how he took down the Undertaker. *Yawn*

Features also include storyboard-to-film comparisons and trailers.

Widescreen (1.78:1). The look of the film is a grimy, dirty one with dust, cobwebs, and pieces of bloody flesh stealing every scene.

5.1 Dolby Surround. Every now and then, this film has an effective soundtrack that pulls the viewer into the intensity of a scene. While surround sound may be effective here, the audio in its entirety is nothing to write home about.

Standard DVD keep case. The front cover is the theatrical poster art, which shows Kane's face with a grizzly hook placed over his eye.

I am a horror junkie, but See No Evil just didn't provide me with that much-needed fix. Kane is intended to be a memorable psychopath, but he doesn't even come close. There is nothing mysterious or interesting about this heavy-hitting character who wasn't hugged enough as a child. Wrestling fans may marvel at Kane as he throws people around the set like an unstoppable machine. However, I cannot recommend this dull showcase of splatter and poor acting.

Questions? Comments? Just want to talk movies? Drop me a line at dodd@movieweb.com