DVD Review: MIDNIGHT MOVIE (2008)

I just finished watching Phase 4 Film's MIDNIGHT MOVIE. The film is an interesting mixture of slasher film and supernatural horror film. A nice twist to the slasher genre and something new that you probably haven't seen before. Here is the basic plot synopsis from imdb.com:

At a run down theater in a sleepy suburban town, a group of friends attend the midnight screening of a 1970s cult horror film. These unsuspecting teenagers are unaware that the director and star of the movie made a bloody escape from a psych ward five years earlier and may still be on the loose.As the midnight movie begins, the kids heckle the old black-and-white scenes. But they are jolted when the killer butchers one of their friends...on screen! They soon realize that the killing is not a prank. They are locked inside the theatre and the killer from the movie is after them!Caught between reality and the screen's flickering shadows, are they becoming the unwilling stars of the very horror movie they are watching?

This was a really fun film to watch, and one you might need to watch again to catch everything, as it can get somewhat confusing. The kids in the theater are watching and old film from the 70's called "The Dark Beneath". While they are watching, the screen flickers and then cuts to a scene of their friend who had gone to the bathroom. The kids see their friend get killed on screen and after finding out it is not a prank, the rest of the kids start dying off one by one. The strange thing about this film is that the slasher comes out of the film and can control the surroundings in a very unique way. For instance, in one scene, the kids are all locked in the theater but see a policeman outside, called to investigate a disturbance there. The kids run to the glass doors and beat on them trying to get the cops attention. It is though the cop doesn't even see them. The film then cuts to a shot of the policeman's point of view from outside the theater looking in, and you don't see anyone in the theater...the lobby looks all clear. Then a cutback to inside the theater shows all the kids still screaming and beating on the glass doors. Apparently the killer controls what he wants people to see and not to see. This was a very effective scene that set a good tone for the film.
Overall, the acting is good, and the makeup effects are really well done. The killer in the film has a great look, wearing a mask made of the top half of a skull. This movie is a lot of fun and I would recommend it to anyone who is looking for some fresh ideas when it comes to the slasher genre.

CLICK HERE to watch the trailer for MIDNIGHT MOVIE

CLICK HERE to visit the official website of Phase 4 Films