Otis DVD Review

Of course, this is not a new trend of Hollywood horror, as history shows clearly. Most recently this genre has seemed to suffer from countless remakes of foreign films as the only chance to break away from the gore-porn trend of recent. The most unique horror film to come out of the United States in this previous year was Cloverfield, a film which seemed arguably similar to The Host, a South Korean monster film. There is no escaping the reliance on outside influence for inspiration in American horror, as far back as Germany’s The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, which influenced the style that would become famously used in Universal’s horror films of the 1930s. Occasionally Hollywood even manages to successfully capture the spirit of what made the foreign films work, but this can only be done my insuring the relevance of the horror film remain.

Horror comedies are among the many successful ways that British horror has managed to find a unique spot of outputting original material which is also exportable. The first and most obviously defining film to spark the return of this occasionally popular sub-genre was Shaun of the Dead, which was followed with several in a similar vein (Severance, The Cottage). America once again finds itself in the position of attempting to cash in on foreign horror films, in an odd role reversal to the usual dynamic between U.K. and U.S. cinema. Otis makes an attempt to blend the comedy with a specific trend in American horror that is all Hollywood can claim as their unique creation. The trend is towards the capturing and torturing of humans, and in this case the tortured are candidates for a deranged man’s fantasy prom experience.

Although the concept of Otis may sound slightly amusing and just deranged enough to remain interesting, but there is something missing from the tone which is the very thing that makes the British horror-comedies so enjoyable. There is a sweetness to those films, where you are allowed to like the well-fleshed out characters, but Otis doesn’t bother with likable characters, believable performances, or digestible scenarios. What begins as a disturbing scenario quickly spirals into an unbelievable resolution of goofily executed violence desperately trying to cover up for the fact that the script is not inherently funny. It’s actually quite disgusting.

All in all the film seems to suffer from unclear direction, with some performances much larger than others, despite efforts to make the material work. Ironically it is the name actors cast in the film that seem to try too hard, which works against the material. Instead it is newcomer Boston Christopher who is impressively dead-pan at moments. Although Otis’s delusions aren’t ever fleshed out onscreen besides a poorly written scene between him and his brother (Kevin Pollack), there are a few moments where he maintains a consistent presence that is missing from the rest of the film.

The DVD contains a commentary track with director Tony Krantz (television’s 24) and writer Erik Jendresen (Band of Brothers). There is also an alternate ending that only further enforces my views of the film, as well as a featurette and a deleted scene.