DVD Review: Laid to Rest (2009)

This is one wicked little slasher...

Cast Members of Note- Bobbi Sue Luther, Lena Headey, Thomas Dekker, Kevin Gage, Richard Lynch, Johnathon Schaech.

A hooker wakes up in a coffin, not sure where she is or how she got there. Sure, we've seen it a million times before, especially those of us that know how to "party," but this time there's far more blood involved. There's also less guilt, and basically no legal ramifications involved either... wait, what was I saying?

Stop screaming! It's a funeral home, it's supposed to look like that.

Chrome Skull, a killer with the best name ever, seems to enjoy traveling from town to town, killing hot chicks and anyone else that gets all up in his mix. He's a fair killer too, going so far as to spare a guy's wife in exchange for some hooker he wants dead. You don't find that quality in a serial killer everyday. Plus, much like Kip from Napoleon Dynamite, he loves technology.

He's like a cyber-ninja who hates people.

All hell breaks loose as the hooker, the widower and a computer nerd miserably fail to get away from old Chromey multiple times... and by hell I mean bloody, nasty, "cut them all to fucking pieces" hell. I won't spoil what happens for you here, but suffice it to say that I think he kills the whole town. Literally.

"So, um... now that my wife's dead, you wanna do it? You kinda owe me."

This movie is pretty damned good; from the awesome credits sequence, to the insanely graphic and realistic gore, Laid to Rest delivers the goods in a smart and sleek way. That's not to say that it didn't have some issues, because it did. There are plot holes all over the place, some of the dialogue is pretty bad, and some of the characters do some pretty dumb things, but still this movie kicks some ass.

Chrome Skull was a great movie maniac; he had purpose and he wasn't just an out of control killer dispatching people for no good reason. He could end up being an iconic character in the genre, though it's too early to say. Either way, I hope we get a sequel to see him in action again.

Tampons are in aisle 4, hun.

Is this a Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles tie in? Both Sarah and John Conner are in this movie, so it's a legitimate question. I'm confused. Even more confusing than that, how in the hell do you pronounce Johnathon Schaech's name? Shake? Shachich? Shh-H? Whatever.

...and then a skeleton popped out!

Why is Chrome Skull so angry? I mean, who amongst us doesn't want to brutally kill a few women now and then, but the difference is, we don't do it (as far as anyone can prove.) Chrome Skull just doesn't give a fuck, and he really needs to learn to control his impulses.

I think he's smiling.

Top notch, balls-to-the-wall gore! Seriously, this is one for the ages. The gore here is plentiful and well done, and a hearty thank you goes out to the Director/FX Guru Robert Hall and his special effects studio. Good shit, boys.

Damn, son!

We get some boobs and nakedness, but it's not really sexy nudity. Still, it's there.

Next time, get naked.

"I left a note" or "He wants to make me dead."

Chrome looks really cool when used as a fashion accessory. Also, hookers are dumb, yet hot.

What does it matter, they all end up dead in the end anyway...

You have to see this movie if you love slashers; an awesome killer, some even more awesome kills, plenty of gore... this is a great stalk-n-slash flick, despite its flaws. Check it out on DVD on April 21st.

B+

Laid to Rest is available now on DVD and VOD.

This tasty trio is in this...