'Trick 'R Treat' Starring Anna Paquin Is Worth The Hype

Nice review of Trick 'R Treat from Starpulse

Once Warner Bros. declined to release the film, producer Legendary Pictures held screenings for potential buyers only to have no takers. Then, it hit the festival circuit, where it drew rapturous reviews from hard-to-please horror fan boys.

And now, more than three years after it was filmed, "Trick 'R Treat" finally gets released, with one burning question: Is it worth the hype? Absolutely.

The anthology film has a storied history in the horror genre, and "Trick" is a worthy addition to the canon. Dougherty intricately weaves four tales of murder and mayhem into a seamless package - it could have gone wrong, but it's a testament to his passion for this project that it all comes together.

The stories revolve around a local principal (Dylan Baker), who likes to have a little too much Halloween fun with his son; a young woman (Anna Paquin) who seems to have trouble with guys; a group of kids making a pilgrimage to the site of a haunted bus crash; and a grumpy old man (Dylan Baker) who receives a most unwanted trick-or-treater.

Without revealing too much, "Trick" is the rare recent horror film that doesn't feel the need to punish the viewer with torture devices and grim brutalization - no, the movie wants to give us good, old-fashioned scares. It's the kind of movie that you can watch without feeling the need to take a shower after, or figure out the complex mythology behind a serial killer's motives.

It would have been nice if this movie had come out in theatres - this is the perfect communal film, where everyone could have jumped at the scares and gasped at the revelations - but at this point, it's a success that the film saw the light of day at all. At least it got a beautiful Blu-ray transfer.

Should this have been sent to DVD Purgatory? No way. This would have been a bona fide box-office hit, especially given the tie-in to Halloween. Now, it will have to settle with being a cult classic.

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