You may or may not of noticed I’ve been a little slack lately on the reviews, but that’s only because I recently moved into a brand new house, with my time being taken up unpacking all the numerous goodies I’ve accumulated over the years (note to self, I own way to many unopened action figures.) Thankfully though, I managed to find some me time and I plunked myself down in front of the TV to watch the Anchor Bay / Raven Banner Blu-ray release of Cub, also known as Welp. If you haven’t heard about it before, it’s a Belgium film that’s about a group of Cub Scouts, who run amuck a few demented beings in the woods. There’s obviously more to it than that, but I wouldn’t want to spoil it now would I. Read on if you want to know a tiny bit more…
PRODUCT INFORMATION
DISCS: 2 (1 Blu-ray, 1 DVD)
RUN-TIME: 85 min
ASPECT RATIO: 2.35:1
RESOLUTION: 1080p
AUDIO: 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, 5.1 Dolby Digital, 2.0 Dolby Stereo
SUBTITLES: English
REGION: A
RATING: NR
PRODUCTION DATE: 2014
RELEASE DATE: Aug 18th, 2015
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| Pictures from Artsploitation Website |
PLOT SUMMARY
Over-imaginative 12 year-old Sam heads off to the woods to summer scout camp with his pack convinced he will encounter a monster…and he does.
MOVIE
While on a Scout outing with other fellow Scouts, Sam encounters a thing in the woods that may or may not be good. Meanwhile, other people are running into all sorts of traps setup in the woods and people start ending up dead. No one is safe in Cub.
I don’t really want to go into super detail with this movie, as I find the less you know the better. It’s an interesting little slice of horror. Maurice Luijten, who plays Sam, is the highlight of the movie, as he does a wonderful job as the over imaginative kid, who has had a troubled past. A lot of other people in the movie are there for fodder reasons, but I can’t complain, as some of the kills are ingenious. This movie has a mean streak running through it.
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| Pictures from Artsploitation Website |
The only small complaint I have going against Cub, is the lack of explanation on certain events. A lot is left up to you as the viewer to figure things out. I personally would’ve liked a little bit more backstory come the end of the movie. Things kind of just end suddenly, while various plot threads are left hanging. I will admit, most of the “big moments” in the movie are pretty predictable, but maybe that’s just my numerous years of horror movie watching coming into play. (My business card does say I’m a Horror Expert.)
BLU-RAY
Finally, a Blu from Anchor Bay that includes a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio option! The audio is splendid in this film, with the soundtrack being a big highlight and I’m glad to see the best quality option being included. The speakers are filled with echos of the woods and everything is coming through nice and clear. The video is also top notch, with nice blacks, which is a plus, as a majority of the film takes place at night. You also have two other audio options, 5.1 Dolby Digital and 2.0 Dolby Stereo, but who wants to use those! As the film is in Flemish and French, the disc includes optional English Subtitles.
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| Pictures from Artsploitation Website |
Special Features are pretty nice. You have a couple deleted scenes, which don’t add much to the story; a small SFX reel, which shows off the fancy special effects in the movie; a 13 minute short film titled Of Cats and Women, which is pretty twisted; a music video titled One Hour; and finally a few trailers for Cub and various other releases.
BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES
– Deleted Scenes
– SFX Reel
– Of Cats and Women (Short Film)
– One Hour (Music Video)
– Trailers
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| Pictures from Artsploitation Website |
VERDICT
Cub is like The Lord of the Flies meets Texas Chainsaw Massacre meets Wrong Turn. It’s got the right amount of horror, but doesn’t go too overboard in the crazies in the woods category. Performances are top notch, especially from Maurice Luijten, and the film will give you a few creepy moments to satisfy the horror fiend inside you. I was a little disappointed with the lack of explanation come the end, but I’m willing to let it slide given how good the rest of the movie was. Anchor Bay / Raven Banner has done a great job with this Blu-ray, giving you plenty of audio options to choose from, and a few special features to spend some time with. It might not be featured packed, but it’s a nice helping. With all that said, I definitely recommend picking this disc up.
RATING
