Dead End (2003) Horror Movie Review

by Jacob

Released: September 26, 2003
Directed by: Jean-Baptiste Andrea, Fabrice Canepa
Written by: Jean-Baptiste Andrea, Fabrice Canepa
Starring:

Ray Wise as Frank Harrington
Lin Shaye as Laura Harrington
Mick Cain as Richard Harrington
Alexandra Holden as Marion Harrington
Billy Asher as Brad Miller

It was 1:00 am in the morning when I first watched this movie. I was alone and I had just finished watching another horror flick titled Creep (2004). I was browsing through the instant access on Netflix Dead End caught my attention. I read the description but still wasn't sure if to watch it. I did, and in the end, I was scared out of my mind. This movie has a very original plot and had me at the edge of my seat the entire time. Questions flew through my brain as scene after scene blew by me like incoming bullets. Then at the end, everything was answered and new questions were formed. But I would be spoiling the movie if I mentioned them.

Dead End is very dark and very eerie. The acting is amazing and I enjoyed the fact that it makes you use your imagination, similar to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) , where they don't show all of the butchering.

The initial plot seems simple but turns out by the middle of the film to be quite complex. It’s Christmastime and this family (dad, mom, son, daughter and daughter’s boyfriend) are off to Grandma's house. It's nighttime and dad decides to take a back route that he has never taken before. This turns out to be a big mistake when he picks up a woman wearing white and carrying what seems to be a dead baby. They stop by an abandoned cabin to try and call 911. But when they return the boyfriend and the lady in white are missing. Now every time they stop, someone goes missing and is later found dead when an old collector’s car drives by with them in the back. They begin to die one by one as they slowly lose their minds while driving on a road that seems never to end.

I felt like I was in the Twilight Zone while watching this creepy movie. It was worth seeing and I would recommend it to anyone who's looking for a good scare and mind melter.

Now there are definitely scenes that younger people should not witness. This movie includes the son smoking pot, bad language, lots of violence and gore. The father drinks and drives and the son makes out with a naked woman who bites off his bottom lip without him knowing. Etcetera, etcetera.

That being said, if you are an adult and you want to be scared, see Dead End.