DVD Review: RED HOOK (2009)

I recently watched the movie RED HOOK, and I have to tell you this is one of the better Horror movies I have seen in quite some time. The film was written by Sammy Buck and Elizabeth Lucas and was directed by Elizabeth Lucas as well. The film is distributed by Phase 4 Films.
Here is the plot synopsis from imdb.com:

Ten years after witnessing her older sister's brutal murder, Jenny Traylor leaves her hometown in North Carolina to start her freshman year at the University of New York City. Still traumatized by her sister's death and struggling with crippling agoraphobia, Jenny tries to cope with the overwhelming city and figure out her new life. When Jenny's over-enthusiastic Resident Advisor organizes a Welcome Week scavenger hunt, Jenny is reluctantly persuaded to join the game. But as she and her new friends decipher the cryptic clues texted to their cell phones - clues that lead them through darker and increasingly remote parts of the city - it becomes terrifyingly clear how high the stakes have become. Someone is hunting for real.

I have a feeling that not too many of you horror fans out there know about this film or have ever even heard of it. I know I hadn't heard anything about it going into it. I am so glad I watched this film and hope you check it out for yourselves. I love when I run across a Horror movie that I don't have any real expectations for and come away really having enjoyed watching the film.
RED HOOK is a good mix between a slasher film and a classic murder mystery. A who-done-it sort of film, if you will. The movie is very stylish and there is a telephone theme running all throughout the movie that is interesting. Phones play a major part in this film (the scavenger hunt clues are given out by text messages). The opening credits are done in a very interesting way, with the names being put up in numbers first then turning into the letters that make up the names (with the numbers turning into the to the corresponding letters on a phone's keypad).
The acting in this movie is superb for this type of lower budget film with no big name actors. Christina Brucato as Jenny and Hollis Scarborough as AnGela (that is An-GEL-a...not Angela and she reminds Jenny upon their first meeting) both gave excellent performances in this film. The character of AnGela brought some comic relief to the film throughout and has some really funny lines.
Ok, now to the good stuff...I'm sure you want to know about the kills in this film. There are quite a few, but only a few are actually seen on-screen. BUT...the few that are seen are very well done, very graphic, and brutal. Don't worry, you will see plenty of the red stuff in this film! One of the more gruesome scenes involves a woman getting stabbed in the lower stomach by the killer who is standing behind her.....the killer then pulls the knife up and cuts from her lower stomach all the way to the top of her chest! ICK!!
The ending is a nice twist, with the killer being revealed and, of course, is not who everyone thought it was. Fans of this type of movie will probably see this coming, and guess the killer pretty early on, but that shouldn't keep you from enjoying this film at all.
Overall this is a great film that I would highly recommend. I hope to see more from director Elizabeth Lucas in the future.


CLICK HERE to watch the trailer for RED HOOK
CLICK HERE to visit the RED HOOK official website

CLICK HERE to visit the official website of Phase 4 Films