DVD Reviews

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil – DVD Review

By Jeff Swindoll Nov 30, 2011, 14:39 GMT

Tucker and Dale are two best friends on vacation at their dilapidated mountain house, who are mistaken for murderous backwoods hillbillies by a group of obnoxious, preppy college kids. When one of the students gets separated from her friends, the boys try to lend a hand, but as the misunderstanding grows, so does the body count. ...more

A bunch of haughty college kids head to the woods, encounter some loveable bumpkins who they think are serial killers, and then begin committing suicide. Well, something like that, but the results have both hilarity and heart.

Allison (Katrina Bowden), Chad (Jesse Moss), Chloe (Chelan Simmons), Chuck (Travis Nelson), Jason (Brandon Jay McLaren), Naomi (Christie Liang), Todd (Alex Arsenault), Mitch (Adam Beauchesne) and Mike (Joseph Allan Sutherland) are college students heading to the woods to goof off and get high.

They nearly run into a truck and the two occupants give them the evil eye as the kids pass by. Those two sinister looking sorts are Tucker (Alan Tudyk) and Dale (Tyler Labine) who actually aren’t that sinister at all but on the way to go and fix up Tucker’s vacation home.

The kids stop by the gas station to get beer and again run into the two rednecks. Again, a misunderstanding only reinforces the kids’ contention that the two are serial killer hillbillies. All parties head out to the woods, unknowingly not too far apart.

When Tucker and Dale are fishing the college kids try out skinny dipping and a surprised Allison falls off of a rock when she sees the two in their boat. They save her, but it appears to her friends that they are kidnapping her.

So now the kids stage an assault on Tucker and Dale’s decrepit cabin to save her and only more misunderstanding and a growing body count are in store… not to mention some good belly laughs.

Even Evil will have a giggle or two when watching this film. You’d think that a movie made in 2009 and held for a year might have a bit of a bad reputation, but good buzz and great convention showings made you wonder why it was sequestered. Oh well, that’s show biz.

When it was finally unleashed, it developed quite the following and it’s not hard to see why. It takes an old horror film trope (killer hillbillies – you too may be half hillbilly) and gives it a fresh spin.

What we find out is that our doofus college kids are not as accepting as you’d think and mistake the good ole boys Tucker and Dale for Freddy and Jason. They’re the true stars of the show as Tudyk and Labine add heart as well as comedy to the bumbling, naïve duo.

I guess Tucker and Dale vs. Mistaken Identity didn’t have the same ring to it. Bowden also adds some depth and a sweet romance to her role. The other kids are around for body count, but their demises offers some hilarity.

The film is ripe for discovery for horror fans and will certainly elicit chuckles for fans of Wrong Turn, The Hills Have Eyes, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, or any other of that genre.

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil is presented in widescreen (2.35:1) and is enhanced for 16x9 televisions.

Special features include a commentary with director Eli Craig, Labine, and Tudyk, the 12 minute making of, the 16 minute “Tucker and Dale ARE Evil” which replays the movie from the viewpoint of the kids, 8 minutes of outtakes, storyboards, the 4 minute HDNet look at the film, and the 2 minute theatrical trailer.

Tucker and Dale are anything but evil and offer up a funny and fresh spin on a old trope. It all comes down to its two stars and Tudyk and Labine have a great chemistry and you’re rooting for them all the way.