Full Moon and Tempe present a double feature DVD of horrific independent proportions. Two full-length (sorta) indie horror films and a host of extras ensure that at first glance we've got some impressive presentations before us. Upon closer inspection one discovers that there are actually much more horrendous ways of spending your afternoon than with this double threat on DVD. Moderately priced and thoroughly entertaining, Jigsaw and Totem make for an unexpected treat (no trick here).

Let's start off with Jigsaw, a film with an intriguing plot structure and an even more intriguing execution. A group of art students (the saddest bunch of traumatic storytellers you've ever seen) embark on their final project... and his name is Jigsaw. Each student is given a body part from a mannequin they have to "dress up". About a week later, they meet up with their teacher (how old is this guy?) at Sneaky Pete's a local dive bar in town. One by one they explain the piece they've decorated and order a round of drinks (their choice) to accompany their part in the creation of Jigsaw. Each student has a more pathetic and agonizing story than the last (suicide, abusive relationships etc.) Each individually designed piece of Jigsaw is built on each person's torment, agony and pain. Once assembled, the group burns Jigsaw in effigy (a cleansing of sorts) only to have awakened their worst primal nightmares. Good ol' Jigsaw comes to life and reclaims each of his parts one by one from the very students who helped to put him together (with sometime sexy results, sometime sexier results and yet sometimes even sexier results still!). It's pretty wacky yes, and while there are some aspects of the story as well as moments in each performance that come across as contrived and weak... for the most part it manages to work. This is a character driven story, it isn't even well into the third act when Jigsaw even comes to life. However, once he does, it can be quite a brutal and upsetting scene as the students are taken out by way of their own previous traumatic experiences. Well, I guess it's partly their fault for building Jigsaw with a sawblade on one arm and a sawed off shotgun on the other! Meh.

Next up is Totem, a flick that while running just over an hour feels more like a classic episode of MONSTERS or Tales from the Darkside than an actual film. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing (or even a good thing for that matter) Totem left me feeling quite neutral by the time the hour was up. A group of 6 strangers are inexplicably brought together in the woods (no it's not Full Moon's answer to the Real World) to fulfill some sort of ancient ritual. Unable to leave a specific radius surrounding the area they were drawn to, they discover a graveyard with some ancient totem statues as well as graves with each of their own names on it (uh oh). They soon discover that to fulfill the prophecy, 3 of them will kill and 3 will be killed. With just over an hour running time to figure the whole thing out, let's hope they can escape the little stone baddies (and each other) before it's too late. Despite the fact that Totem feels a bit more polished visually of the two, it also comes across as the more sophomoric of the two as well. This production is quite the Full Moon feature all the way with creatures that just scream Puppetmaster, Dollman, Demonic Toys and Blood Dolls all rolled up into one. The film never overstays its welcome and while it's nothing to write to Kubrick or Scorsesse about, It's really not a bad way to spend a rainy Sunday afternoon.

Video and Audio quality from both features is pretty much what one would expect from a couple of titles of this caliber. The widescreen framing of Jigsaw gives the feature a more cinematic quality, while both look about as good as an SOV feature can look on DVD. No real evidence of artifacting and solid colors all around. Both films feature stereo surround tracks with Totem boasting a much lusher surround field. Dialogue is clear and music and effects come across rather nicely.

Extras for both features are impressive and fun as well. Jigsaw includes a feature length commentary with so many participants I just lost count after a while. The track quite often veers off track and doesn't always follow the onscreen action, but it's still fun nonetheless. Next up is a trailer and a brief making of featurette that lasts about 15-minutes. It's a pretty nifty piece that actually features some moments of gore that appear to have been left on the cutting room floor from the feature itself. I would have liked to have heard an explanation as to why, but alas the topic is never brought up. Extras on Totem are a bit lighter, just a trailer and an episode of Full Moon Videozone (a video magazine) that runs about 16-minutes. This episode features some info on upcoming Full Moon releases (from 2000) as well as a behind the scenes feature on Totem. Oddly enough, both films feature chapter stops, but no chapter selection screens.

Fans of the indie horror scene, Full Moon, Tempe et al will most likely enjoy this healthy double dose of features and extras. I enjoyed rummaging through this disc the other day and before I new it the whole thing was over. Nothing to be taken too seriously, but definitely better than many of the other SOV offerings out there and the price is certainly right (as they say). With such a low cost of indulgence you've really got nothing to lose.

For more info on this and other Tempe titles click here!