As unfamiliar with the Broken Lizard Comedy Troupe as I was (and still am for that matter), I didn't quite know what to expect from the arrival of Club Dread on DVD. I knew that Broken Lizard was behind the flick Super Troopers (a film I still haven't seen to this day) and that it was fairly well received at the time of its release. Although from the trailers, I naturally assumed it wasn't for me. What I got out of the Club Dread promos wasn't all too promising either. Upon first glance, Club Dread appeared to be another post Scream self-referential parody (strike one), of which I'd surely had enough, and it also had the nerve to star Bill Paxton (strike two). At this point, I wasn't even ready to stick around and give the flick an opportunity for a third strike. However, never judging a book by its cover, I just dug right in. And while in the end the results didn't blow me away by any means, I did wind up pleasantly surprised.

I don't even know if it's worth going into the clichés that Club Dread gleefully spurts out in its 104-minute running time. They're tired and old all right, but what else would you expect from your typical horror flick parody? The gist of it all centers around a group of 'unlucky' visitors vacationing on a small island in Costa Rica aptly named Coconut Pete's Pleasure Island. Your host, Coconut Pete (played by Bill Paxton) is a Jimmy Buffet wannabe (or is Jimmy Buffet a Coconut Pete wannabe?) who REALLY doesn't like it when people ask him to play Margaritaville. The island, a full-on resort of fun and debauchery plays host to a group of wacky administrators/counselors, mostly portrayed by Broken Lizard team members. The wacky cast includes a member of the 'fun police,' a gentleman named Dave who's responsible for DJ duties (as well as drugs) and Putman (played by director Jay Chandrasekhar), a dreadlocked Rastafarian tennis instructor who speaks with a swanky British accent.

Soon after the guests' arrival, counselors and employees start to get knocked off one by one (surprise, surprise). Everyone's a suspect (natch), and while the filmmakers would have loved to have the mystery play up to its full potential, it never really does. This is a comedy after all, so what we're actually waiting for is the expected onslaught of humor and gags, right? All the while, the identity of the killer remains second fiddle in the mind of the viewer. This is one of the problems that I had with Club Dread - the fact that mid way through, the horror elements took over, to some unspectacular results. I really appreciated the brand of humor that was delivered, and was happy to see a most welcomed absence of annoying movie references and/or gross out humor. The jokes were subtle and smart, and when they worked, they really worked well (you can't help but chuckle when the stone door to a mausoleum shutting is chalked up to the wind). The problem is there just wasn't enough of this humor to carry an hour and forty minute long film. Mid way through, there's far too much of a focus on the identity of the killer and the horror elements are thrust on the audience once again, while I couldn't help but think...where did all the jokes go? With an equally strong 'old school' opening and finale, the creamy center of it all just couldn't manage to hold it all together.

Still, there's enough going on here to base a recommendation, even if it's just a Saturday night rental. As I said earlier, when the jokes hit, they hit pretty hard. The beauty of it all lies in the fact that the jokes are played straight, which works fully to the films advantage. There's no winking or nudging at the camera, and none of the characters are aware of the humor-taking place, even when they are unexpectedly thrown right in the middle of it all. A perfect example of this includes a scene in which a 'live' game of Pac Man is played to some pretty hilarious results. There are equal parts gore, bikini clad babes and T&A, which was mostly unexpected and welcomed in my eyes. It's nice to see that there are still filmmakers who dig putting tits in their films, it's certainly not like it used to be in this department, so of course this came as a refreshing change. Performances are surprisingly effective, considering we're dealing with a bunch of caricatures; it shouldn't have been all too difficult to pull it off to begin with. Even Bill Paxton (whom I usually dislike) puts in a fine performance as the 'has been' Coconut Pete. The real key here is the fact that everyone seemed to really be enjoying themselves, and it definitely shows.

Presented on DVD as a flipper disc with a full frame and widescreen version on either side, Club Dread makes an impressive appearance on DVD. The film was obviously shot on a fairly low budget, so the scope framing definitely adds a touch of class to the whole affair, even if director Jay Chandrasekhar doesn't always take full advantage of the space in his frame. There's really no hint of artifacting or print damage, It's fairly clean throughout. It's a nice looking transfer for the most part, even if colors do come across a bit drab and muted from time to time. Audio is presented in a Digital 5.1 mix with fairly strong results as well. There's not much in the form of directional effects, but sound generally fills the room quite nicely, even if the music and effects tend to over power the dialogue every now and then. Also, look for a few familiar music cues on both the menu screens and within the film, I sure hope they paid their royalties!

Extras are fairly thin, a fact that is bound to not please the die-hard fans of Broken Lizard. Aside from a promo for the films' soundtrack (?) we are given two cast and crew commentaries, and that is it! Added bonus features like behind the scenes, FX demos, and cast and crew interviews would have REALLY helped this package gain value, what a missed opportunity that was.

It's hard to tell if Club Dread is coming from the minds of die-hard genre fans or a group of comedians who thought it would just be funny to parody the horror genre. Either way, I'm glad that the film looks less like Scary Movie and more like Student Bodies or Saturday the 14th. Club Dread has a lot going for it, it's just a shame that they seemed to lose focus for a bit mid way through...though still worth checking out if you're in the right frame of mind.