Some stories just seem to know how to push all the emotional buttons with an audience. A few sure ways to get to the viewers is a sad story with an animal and a man’s drive to gain revenge. Both are well employed in the 2008 film ‘Red’. This is a story of a man whose beloved pet dog is killed by some juvenile delinquents. He sets out to extract his revenge forcing them to apologize for what they did. On the surface this may seem like a sappy version of the typical horror revenge flick and at times it does foray into that territory. Ultimately the combination of an interesting script, good direction and strong performances rescue this movie and make it well worth watching. Yes, it does go for the emotional quick jab but after that it switches to a taut thriller that is satisfying. This is the kind of movie that makes all cinema buffs glad there is a thing like the independent film community. Made with a reported budget of only $2.5 million, hardly enough makeup in most big budget flicks, this movie shows that a ton of money is not required for a quality production. Like many Indies it was not able to recoup the budget with its release. It was shown in a few major film festivals and had a very limited theatrical outing. One piece of technology that has made it possible for little films like this to reach the audience it so richly deserves is DVD. Now you can enjoy a movie like this even if you don’t happen to live near an art house. Magnolia Home Entertainment has been an excellent source of films like this for awhile and they have released this movie on DVD. The film has its shortcomings but manages to give the necessary thrills to the audience that a good revenge flick should have.

There is a little irony behind the scenes of this movie. As many may have realized there is a definite trend in independent films towards horror. They are cheap to make, fast to film and offer a good chance at making money. While this film is not in that overly diluted genre many of the creative people who created it are better known for their participation in this genre. The basic story is based on the 1995 novel ‘Red’ by master of the macabre Jack Ketchum. Several of his novels have been made into movies and they all share one common theme; the darkest thing in the world is the human being. He typically takes on stories like a girl being held prisoner and tortured by the neighborhood under the watchful eye of an adult. His book was translated to the screen by Stephen Susco. This is his third time scripting for a film. His first two works were ‘Grudge’ and ‘Grudge 2’, both remakes of Japanese horror flicks. He also was one of the directors chosen for the anthology series ‘Masters of Horror’. Susco makes the translation in genres look easy; something that it is not. He substitutes an unspeakable supernatural terror with a man on a mission for his own brand of justice. Instead of some twenty somethings scared out of their minds we get three teens that richly deserver whatever happens to them do to their heinous disregard to life. This kind of story contains one of my personal favorite themes; pushing a reasonable man beyond all sense of reason. There is also a sub plot on social class privilege when the boys are discovered to from wealthy families. Many times in the news of late we hear about some rich celebrity skating away from legal responsibility. The screenplay expertly divides the emotions of the audience. We have sympathy for the man who lost his dog and nothing but contempt for the teenagers. The story does meander in the third act but until that point it is gripping.

Directing this is Trygve Allister Diesen and Lucky McKee. Okay the later name sounds like something out of a comic book but he is an established director. Like the writers he is moving over from straight horror. His previous works include ‘All Cheerleaders Must Die’, ‘The Woods’ and the excellent weird tale ‘May’. Disesen is a well respected Norwegian director usually with dramas. They do allow their characters to be too broadly drawn to allow the full impact of the story. It has to be difficult for two men especially from different film genres to co-direct but the results here work out well enough. Disen adds the drama necessary to ground the film while Mckee provides the right touch of tension to the movie. Some of the situations are too far from reality to make sense but the direction does help the audience to achieve a suspension of belief that is required to enjoy this film. Unlike most films this was shot in the old academy ratio of 1.33:1 so don’t look for a widescreen version. It may seem like an odd choice but it seems to work well here and an it is important to respect an director’s vision.

The film starts off calm. There is a beautiful serenity to the opening shots that help the audience immediately identify with Avery Ludlow (Brian Cox). He works as a simple shopkeeper in Oregon living in a solid house in the countryside. His only friend and companion is his dog Red, given to him years ago by his late wife. The day starts as any other. After a quick trip to town Avery and Red head off to their favorite fishing spot. They are rudely interrupted by the McCormick boys Danny (Noel Fisher) and Harold (Kyle Gallner) along with their friend Peter (Shiloh Fernandez). Danny takes out a shotgun and demands money from Avery. When the amount is less than they expected he shoots Red in the head killing him. Avery manages to discover the owner of the shotgun and tries to reason with Danny’s father Michael (Tom Sizemore), a wealthy owner of a trucking company. Michael calls the boys in for their side of the story and believes them when they state they had nothing to do with the crime. Next Avery goes to Peter’s parents Willie (Robert Englund) and his wife (Ashley Laurence) who is openly hostile and appears to be hiding something. Even the authorities blow Avery off in his quest for justice. He then tries to get media attention and his befriended by a sympathetic reporter Carrie Donnel (Kim Dickens).

This is a reasonably well constructed film that despite its faults does move from tugging on your heart strings to letting you cheer on a man with a mission for retribution. It also allows some excellent performances by incredible actors. Cox has been a solid working character actor for many years. While he typically plays the heavy he is able to switch gears and go out of character to give an emotionally compelling portrayal of a man at his wit’s end. Dickens has been in a lot of films and always gives the audience something to behold. Sizemore is also best known for his roles as villains. Here he also is able to put a spin of her performance from a physically impossible bad guy to one who uses power and money to get his way. One last connection to the horror world here is the appearance of Freddy Kruger himself, Robert Englund. Once again he demonstrates his talent playing things other than an unstoppable nightmare killer.

You can always count on Magnolia Home Entertainment for something interesting, With this film they once again score a modest hit for Indy fans.