PopSyndicate.com

Dark, disturbing and unsettling, Otis is one of the best horror films of the year.

There is a quote on the front of the box from Bloody Disgusting that calls Otis, “Juno for the horror set”.  I’m not sure what they meant by that other then both films have some dark humor and young female leads, the two films have nothing in common.  It sounds like the kind of bullshit some sites come up with to make sure they get quoted on the front of DVD boxes.  Otis has been described as a dark comedy and while there are a few ironic moments and vicious set pieces, its disturbing plot and excessive moments take it out of the humor category and plant it firmly into the horror gore category.

Otis Broth (Bostin Christopher) is a huge pizza delivery guy that has been kidnapping, beating and killing pretty young girls who he names Kim.  When Riley Lawson (Ashley Johnson) catches Otis’ eye, he jumps her one morning, taking her home and locking her in his underground compound.  Chained to the floor, Riley wakes up on an bed in a cheerleader uniform.  Confused, the phone beside her bed rings and the game begins as Otis starts to court another young girl that he can take to the prom.  Otis watches her every move with a series of video cameras set up in the room.  For fun, he takes her out of her room and puts Riley in various prefabricated environments so Otis can live out what he perceives his was his brother’s life.

Otis was a bit of a looser in high school and admires his verbally abusive older brother, Mort (Kevin Pollack), whose wife is named Kim.  He was kicked out of his brother’s house after his wife catches him sniffing her used panties.  As far as we know, it’s the catalyst for Otis’ actions.  Eventually, Riley escapes and makes it home where her parents, Will (Daniel Stern) and Kate (Illeana Douglas), plot their revenge on Otis instead of turning him over to the police.

Otis is a seriously dark and disturbing film.  It doesn’t help that the filmmakers went with a light and airy tone for the film.  They play off the sadistic nature of the movie with easy never going for the edginess of Hostel or Saw.  Because of this, Otis comes off far more disturbing and it becomes hard to laugh off the absurdity of it all.  Bostin plays Otis with such conviction that he sucks any camp that might have been there right out.  A lesser actor probably would have ruined the film.  As it stands, Bostin is amazingly effective and gives one of the best performances I’ve seen in any movie this year.

The Raw Feed label hasn’t turned out many gems so far (I think this might be the first).  It’s a shame this didn’t get a theatrical release as it’s one of the best horror movies this year.  Director Tony Krantz and writer Erik Jendreson give a great commentary track as they discuss the themes, story ideas and how the film came together.  They go into good detail dissecting the film and giving context for various elements.

“The Twisted World of Otis” has interviews with all of the cast members as well as Kratz and Jendreson.  It’s a bit of a rehashing of the commentary but if you enjoyed the film, you’ll want to check this out.  “The Birthday Party Alternate Ending” has optional commentary with director Krantz.  It’s a funnier ending than the one in the film.  It’s not as good as the films ending but it would have worked just as well.  Ending the extras is “Otis Home Movies: Suite 16”.  It’s a collection of the films Otis took of his victims. 

Otis is a dark film with a bit of comedy and maybe on future viewings I’ll see the humor over the disturbing subject matter.  Director Krantz gives the film too much reality for me to easily laugh at some of the more absurd moments.  I still highly recommend this movie for horror fans.  It’s not for everyone but if you like a good horror movie, Otis will be a winner.

4