Blu-Ray Review: The Crazies (2010)

The Crazies
Written by: Scott Kosar and Ray Wright
Directed by: Breck Eisner
Starring: Timothy Olyphant, Radha Mitchell, Joe Anderson, & Danielle Panabaker

Specal Features: Audio Commentary with directed Breck Eisner, Behind the Scenes with Directed Breck Eisner, Paranormal Pandemics, The George A. Romero Template, Make-up mastermind Rob Hall in action, The Crazies Motion Comic Episodes 1 & 2, Visual Effects in Motion, Storyboards: Building a Scene and a digital copy of the film.

From the box:

In this terrifying glimpse into the "American Dream" gone wrong, an unexplainable phenomenon has taken over the citizens of Ogden Marsh. One by one the townsfolk are falling victim to an unknown toxin and are turning sadistically violent. Peopl who days ago lived quiet, unremarkable lives are now depraved, bloodthirsty killers.

While Sheriff Dutton (Timothy Olyphant) and his pregnant wife, Judy (Radha Mitchell), try to make sense of the escalating violence, the government uses deadly force to close off all access and won't let anyone in or out - even those uninfected. An ordinary night becomes a horrifying struggle for the few remaining survivors as they do their best to get out of town alive.

Breck Eisner (Sahara) directs this suspenseful reinvention of the George A. Romero classic.


And suspenseful it is. I must admit, I wasn't expecting to enjoy it. I guess the recent state of horror has jaded me a little. I just don't expect good horror anymore. Though last year's House of the Devil was a giant leap forward.

The Crazies, while not perfect, is a fun little flick with plenty of creep outs and scares.  My hat is off to the filmmakers for delivering not only a successful horror film but a successful remake as well.

When I say successful remake, I don't mean in comparison to the original, which I have not seen. I mean in terms of anything labeled as a remake or reimagining now a days seems to be, as if required, garbage.   I'd say this is the case with 90% of remakes currently released. Being as that I have never seen the original film, I have no loyalties or preconceived expectations of what a remake should present. So on that level, The Crazies for me, is successful, if not one of the better horror films lately.


There are a few hiccups.  The bone saw scene for one falls a bit flat but overall, there isn't much to complain about. It sort of becomes a zombie movie with zombies who can think and aren't so much interested in eating you as they are with bashing your brains in.

The acting is surprisingly good and I am reminded again that I really enjoy Timothy Olyphant, which is a fact I always forget until I watch him in a movie.  He looks about 25 in this so it's not exactly believable that he would be sheriff but I forgive them that.

The film looks great on Blu-ray. The night shots are really clear and I didn't notice any grain at all.  It was pretty much crystal clear throughout. The sound is crisp and very well balanced.

The set has a lot of good features especially the behind the scenes materials that is sure to satisfy those who enjoy the glimpse behind the curtain.

Overall, The Crazies is a creeptastic way to spend an evening.  You'll squirm, you'll jump and you'll even find yourself considering whether or not the scenario depicted is possible in reality.

All an all, good stuff!

The Crazies is available now!