Here's why you should be watching The Bridge (2013) on FX

First of all, have you ever seen Diane Kruger? The girl is a German Goddess!

Now that that's out of my system, let's focus on the real reasons that this Summer TV Show is a must see for anyone who loves a good Cop Thriller.

The Bridge is already 11 episodes into its 13 episode Season, but that's no reason for you to not to watch it. These days, binge watching is the way to go anyhow. I mean, it's so much better being able to watch a season of a show all at once, one episode right after another, because waiting until next week to see what happens next is a killer... especially with a show that keeps you on the edge of your seat like this one does.

The progenitor.

Alright, so The Bridge is a remake of a Swedish/Danish show called Bron/Broen. In both versions, a dead body is found on a bridge connecting two countries, exactly on the borderline between the two, which forces Detectives from both sides of the border to team up to solve the case. Of course, the story gets way deeper than just solving the mystery behind one dead body, and by the time all is said and done, lives are shattered, and we the audience are floored.

There's also a British remake of The Bridge called The Tunnel, which premieres in October.

I say that because I saw Bron/Broen last year, and loved it. It was a great Cop vs. Killer show that sucked me in, made me fall in love with it, and then kicked me in the balls with its final moments. Seriously, I was like "WTF, man!"

So far, the American remake is just as good. In fact, it's followed the Danish original pretty much to the letter as far as plot goes, although it did deviate a bit in the latest episode.

So the original was good, the FX version is good, and there's a British version coming soon, which I'm going to imagine will be good as well... but why is it so good?

Lemme show ya.

Let's start with Diane Kruger. We've already established that she's as hot as a scorpion's ass in the Mexican desert, but her performance here is even hotter.

She plays Detective Sonya Cross, one half of the Detective team that sets out to solve the mystery of the corpse on the bridge. What makes her performance so good, is that her character is very different than most other TV Detectives... They never come right out and say it, but Sonya is basically a highly functional Aspie.

Bear with me here, because I'm no medical expert, but people who have Asperger Syndrome tend to have difficulties with social interaction, they may have a lack of empathy, they may display repetitive behavior... it's basically like a highly functional form of Autism.

In relation to this show, and the character of Sonya, her Asperger's gives her a different way of doing her Police work, which frustrates some people, and is endearing to others. Above all, she has the ability to see things in ways that her peers can't, which makes her really effective.

It may take an episode or two to get used to her quirks, but I promise you that it won't be long before you are totally in love with her. She's a great, sympathetic character, and a nice change of pace from the norm. Diane Kruger does some unbelievable work here, and if she doesn't get some Emmy love out of this performance, there is no justice.

The other half of the Detective team is Marco Ruiz, played by Demian Bichir. Marco is a Mexican Cop who is used to playing on the shadier side of the fence, he's a dirty rascal adulterer, and he's not the best Father.. but he's an honorable guy who tries his best to do what's right.

Demian Bichir nails this role, and his Marco is just as likable as is Sonya. They cast this role perfectly, and he's now one of my new faves.

The true beauty of the show is the relationship between Marco and Sonya. It's not romantic or sexual at all, but there's an odd dynamic at work between the two which just makes you have to smile. Sonya is so rigid and matter-of-fact, that Marco isn't sure what to make of her at first. Once he begins to realize that there's something different about her, and I mean in a clinical sense, they begin to click on an almost symbiotic level.

I hate to say that it's "cute" to watch them together, but... it's just cute.

Actors and characters alike, they may be my favorite on screen "couple" of any show on TV right now.

Then there's Ted Levine; one of the best character actors we have. He plays a surrogate Father Figure to Sonya, which gives us yet another interesting relationship with an interesting dynamic to digest. He's excellent in this.

Annabeth Gish is an oddity. I say that because she's one of the few women that I've ever seen get hotter with age. In The Bridge, she plays a hookery Land Baroness, for lack of a better term, who gets caught up in all kinds of shady shit, and her subplot is pretty solid.

The turn she takes in this show has definitely surprised me.

I've been vague about the plot on purpose, because not only is it too complex to properly get into here, but you really just need to see it unfold for yourself. Trust me, it's just better that way. Both the main story and the subplots which revolve around it are compelling and will leave you wanting more.

Along with Showtime's Ray Donovan, The Bridge has been the best show on TV this summer. It's interesting, gripping, sometimes gory (and shockingly so), sexy, fun, and even funny at times.

We Horror fans can't survive on Horror alone, especially when it comes to TV; if we did, we'd have a very limited plate of good shows to digest. A show like The Bridge gives us just enough of a Thriller to satisfy our grisly cravings, while also giving us a great show to enjoy, because we like great shows in general.

If you're not already on board with this one, then go to your cable provider's On-Demand menu, find the FX Network, and get with it.

You're missing out on some really good stuff if you don't.

Did I mention that Diane Kruger is a German Goddess? Because she is.

Blu-ray Essentials: When a Stranger Calls (1979)/Happy Brithday to Me (1981)

When it comes to buying horror movies on Blu-ray, we have one issue; we already own so many horror movies on DVD, that upgrading them all to Blu-ray would cost a small fortune.

There are some titles that we have to own in the best format available however, and so we open to you our Blu-ray Archives, which consist of what we consider to be Must Own Horror & Genre Blu-ray's.

When a Stranger Calls (1979) & (Happy Birthday to Me (1981)
Mill Creek Entertainment
Price: Currently $6.49 on Amazon (click pic above to order)
Discs:
1 50 GB Blu-ray disc
Video:
1080p
Stranger- MPEG-4 AVC (22.00 Mbps) 1.85:1/AR
Birthday- MPEG-4 AVC (20.29 Mbps) 1.78:1/AR
Audio:
Stranger- DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
Birthday-  DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
Subtitles:
English SDH
Region A

When a Stranger Calls and Happy Birthday to Me are two classic Horror flicks from the time when the Horror Genre was just getting its footing, and each movie contributed something to the rise of the genre in their own way.

This isn't the most stunning of Blu-ray offerings (as far as the video/audio presentation goes), nor is it packed with extras or supplemental materials like most discs these days tend to be, but as a bare-bones offering, this is a good package at a great value. 

Stranger delivers some genuinely chilling scenes, and what might be the best opening act that a Horror movie has ever seen (for the record, we think that the final scene is almost as effective.) As much as certain elements of this movie were inspired by Black Christmas, Stranger has since inspired plenty of Horror flicks that followed after it.

"Have you checked the Children?"

Birthday, on the other hand, was hardly groundbreaking or inspiring. What it did do, was give us one of the first "Highbrow" slasher flicks amidst the throng of slashers that existed only to serve up naked coeds getting offed in overtly-visceral ways. This movie was more about the story than it was body count, and it proved that you can combine grisly kills with a solid narrative.

To have both of these lesser-known Horror movies on one Blu-ray disc, and for such a bargain price, is a beautiful thing.

There's some sort of period joke to be made here, but I digress...

For two lower-budget Horror flicks from the late 70's/early 80's, they look pretty good in high-def format. We were absolutely pleased with how crisp they looked, as both were fairly big improvements on their previous DVD versions.

The black levels are deep and solid, and both films retain a good amount of their grainy texture. There's also not a lot of evidence of compression or DNR having been applied to either film, which is always a good thing. Both films look about as sharp as they can here, considering that they were never meant to be visually dazzling to begin with, and it's unlikely that either of them will ever look better than they do here.

Neither Audio mix is spectacular here. Stranger offers up a standard Mono track, while Birthday gives us a solid 5.1 Lossless DTS track. Both sound alright, there's just nothing here for audiophiles to get excited about.

Sadly, for those of us who crave extra/special features, these discs are bare-bones and contain none.

As a Horror fan, you almost have to own When a Stranger Calls, if only for the superb opening sequence. Throw Happy Birthday to Me in there as a bonus, and you've got one hell of a combo at a price that you just can't beat.

This is most likely the best that either movie is ever going to look on a home video format, and both movies were welcomed (though not perfect) upgrades for our collection.

Click the cover art at the top to order yourself a copy from Amazon.

Lots of grisly imagery and acts are to be had in these flicks, and they both are fairly underrated genre offerings that deserve more attention than they get.

 

The Digital Dread Report for the week of September 17th

Another solid week for releases is upon us, and our wallet's are screaming for mercy!

The Bates Motel was a surprise for us, as we couldn't imagine a TV Show about a young Norman Bates working at all. It did work, and it worked really well. In fact, Vera Farmiga was Emmy-worthy as "Mother" in this one, and this solid show is going onto our shelves pronto.

Christopher Lee as Dracula in an old Hammer flick... sold!

All of the Tremors flicks for $29.99 is a sweet deal for us, even if we didn't love the sequels as much as the classic first flick.

Finally, we have World War Z; a flick that we thought would be a solid contender for worst of the year, which ended up being absolutely enjoyable. Whether in 3-D or 2-D, this is a must-own title for sure.

The rest of the week's releases are rentals for us, although there are some solid flicks/TV shows here that many will want to add to their collections.

We like Arrow and Grimm, just not sure if we need to own them.

Same goes for Disconnect and Scenic Route; both were great flicks, but seeing them once was good enough for us.

All of the Classic Monster flicks pretty much speak for themselves.

The only one that we have to warn you to avoid this week is Hidden in the Woods. You can read our review of this one right HERE, or you can just take out word for it; it's really not a good movie, and isn't very enjoyable at all.