Tucker and Dale vs. Evil (2010)

Very disappointing...

Excellent, Without a doubt!!

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

This is what you call a Black comedy. Bloody funny! Alan T. and Tyler L. should do another movie together for sure!

I don't normally get attached to characters, but I especially loved Dale and Allison! It's very rare for horror or even comedies to get me to care about their characters, but this movie was an exception! I see "predictable" in some of the other reviews, but this is not the case! I was expecting this to go the way of "Of Mice and Men". Spoilers for that book, Tucker and Dale are very similar to George and Lennie. Actually very similar! We were just missing the rabbits! Thus, I was predicting Tucker to have to kill Dale due to accidentally killing Allison. Honestly, there were a couple of parts of the movie, I was on the edge of my seat! "Is Allison okay!??" First in the cabin, one of the college kids was shooting their cabin with the sheriff's gun. I was expecting Allison to get hit by a stray bullet, and furthering the strife between Tucker, Dale, and the College Kids. But that would have been really tragic and broke the comedic tone. Then, at the end, I was expecting Allison to get hit with a bowling ball right after she took of the helmet Dale bought her. Like, all the college kids were cursed or something, ala Final Destination. So, yeah, this movie is far from predictable!

A group of college friends are going camping in the woods when they encounter two creepy hillbillies. It's beer-loving, affable Dale (Tyler Labine) and Tucker (Alan Tudyk) going to fix up their newly bought vacation cabin. As the young people go night swimming, Allison (Katrina Bowden) hits her head and is rescued by Dale and Tucker. The other friends fear that she had been kidnapped.The premise is a hilarious twist on the traditional hillbilly killer horror. Labine and Tudyk are a funny duo. The switch in point of view is inventive. The first half is near perfect. When Tucker gets taken, the premise breaks down a little. The miscommunication becomes not simply situational but rather willful ignorance. It takes it one small step closer to silly away from the smart writing. On a minor note, the opening should not give away part of the ending. It would be better setup if the college kids are horror fans watching a Texas Chainsaw adjacent movie. That would truly spoof the traditional horror narrative.

Spending the weekend at the lake camping, drinking, and skinning dipping in the lake, what could possibly go wrong? A lot, unfortunately, as demonstrated in many horror entities such as 'Friday the 13th' and 'Cabin Fever'. When tackling on the horror genre, it seems that the lake house or a cabin in the woods is never a safe place of teenagers, young adults, or even grown man party at. This horror-comedy hybrid sets another example, only with a slightly smarter and heartfelt approach. You ever heard the phrase "don't judge a book by its cover"? Well, this gore-filled comedy takes the inspiring concept and turns it right on his head with this genre- bending farce showcasing a hilarious conflict between a group of college kids and a duo of bearded country men who are just out for a weekend of fishing. Whereas the former are typically the good guys and the latter are usually the bad guys, this film makes a daring task to take that clichéd and gives it a twist. This movie follows a group of college students who drive out to the country and spend their weekend at the lake, the same lake country hillbillies Tucker (played by Alan Dudyk) and Dale (played by Tyler Labine) happen to be camping at. Upon meeting them at a gas station, the gang immediately comes creeped out by them and flees. Later that night, at the lake, one of the girls Allison (played by Katrina Bowden) suffers a head injury and falls into the water. When Tucker and Dale drag her to their cabin to nurse her, her friends grow incredible suspicious (and judgemental) and wage war on the hillbillies. What ensues instead is a comical, but deadly turn for the worst. In today's age, too many people are top quick to judge for the appearance of others. The issue lies within the core of the plot here, which offers an absurd, yet hilarious testament on the consequences of misjudging others for what is seen on the outside than what is on the inside. And director Eli Craig is the mastermind behind reeling in this inspiring phenomenon with a funny, tongue-in- cheek twist. The movie follows a familiar cliché with a young college age kids battling against some middle-aged country boys who they believe are just your average psychopaths hungry for blood, only both sides of the moral compass are swapped between the two groups. The film introduces the two eponymous characters as stereotypical southerners with big beards and lightly sets up their background, while leaving most of the college characters rendered in simple figures. From there on, it is not long before the story escalates into a gut-busting bloodbath, and that is where most of the laughs are perpetrated. When tension between the two sides rise, so does the body count, not because these kids make the stupid decisions known in slasher movies but simply because they are just too amateur to defend themselves without being overly clumsy. Like films such as 'Shaun of The Dead' and 'Hot Fuzz', the film uproots its goofy humor through an excess of blood and gore to showcase the violent, albeit hilarious deaths of the characters. And to fuel up the intellect tank, there is a smart message about thinking before you judge others upon first glance and learning to stand up for yourself, both of which are nicely offered in the midst of the carnage and laughter. Eli Craig proves he knows how to give a film a strong heart without neglecting his duty for reel in some good laughs. Not many comedies, particularly the ones mating with the horror genre, accomplish that feat. Tucker and Dale vs Evil is a wildly funny mix of blood, gore, and surprising amount of heart in the midst of its outrageous gruesome hilarity. It is a funny good time that proves movies can be uproot plenty of laughter through stupidity while flourishing an intellectual touch to the mix. Comedy fans will be satisfied, while gore lovers will be ecstatic.