Blu-ray Review

Wrong Turn 3: Left For Dead

Official Synopsis:

It's hunting season in the deep back woods for Three Finger and his family of hideously deformed inbred cannibal hillbillies! The fight for survival is futile and each successive killing is more gruesome than the last as the cannibals relentlessly stalk a group of attractive young hikers and a group of escaped convicts after their bus crashes on a remote country road.

Our Take:

This is a tough one. I’m not sure whether Wrong Turn 3 is the worst film I’ve ever seen, or if I’m completely amazed and proud of the makers of this feature for embracing the gore in the way that they did. That’s what this film is filled with: pure blood and guts. Oh, there’s a plot; one that involves cops, criminals and the requisite damsel in distress, but let’s be honest; that’s not what people will watch this for. You get to see such things as cannibalism, bodies ripped to the bones, and some really awful forms of death. Dialogue? Forget about it. The lines are so pithy and cliché that I can’t even repeat them. It did elicit quite a bit of laughter, though, I must say. There are no familiar faces in the film at all, which normally would make it easier for me to empathize with the characters, but I just couldn’t feel sorry for any of these people. I guess, in the end, it was just so ridiculous that I stopped being overly critical and just decided to have a good laugh.

The most embarrassing, or maybe awesomely embarrassing part of this film is the visual effects. The parts with people being “slashed” are obviously computer-edited, making them even cheesier. At one point, as I was watching a man being sliced into thirds and seeing the three pieces gracefully falling down, I wondered if I was looking at a Final Cut Pro Viewer Window. Yeah, seeing someone’s leg get sawed to the bone was realistic enough, but a lot of this was just plain ridiculous.

Audio & Video:

Wrong Turn 3 has a pretty solid transfer. The film doesn’t look spectacular like you would see from a big budget Hollywood blockbuster but it looks better than the standard DVD. There are solid colors and pretty decent shadow delineation, especially considering that the film takes place largely at night. The image clarity is pretty solid if not spectacular. There is no dust or debris on the image and contrasts are strong, so overall the transfer does its job well, even if it’s not quite reference quality.

The DTS MA 5.1 surround soundtrack is a somewhat immersive mix. There is a decent of surround usage as the action ratchets up, and the weapon sounds and various other sound effects come at you from all the different speakers, including the rear channels. The .1 LFE bass speaker doesn’t do a whole lot to bolster the low end but it does give it enough of an oomph to kind of jar the proceedings a bit. Overall, this one does get the job done.

Special Features (Blu-ray Exclusive):

The DVD does not include any special features. What a shame! I really wanted to know how they made those “awesome” effects! (I sometimes wish sarcasm came through clearer in typed form).

Action, Gore and Chaos! featurette
Brothers in Blood featurette
Three Finger's Fight Night featurette
Deleted Scenes

Special Features (Standard):

Special features include:

Conclusion:

Overall, I can’t really say I hated this too much, but I certainly didn't like it that much, either. It was entertaining, but it gave me that feeling that I could by a cheap video camera and film something better in a backyard. For lovers of the grotesque, this is right up your alley. For me, it will likely be an anti-insomnia device.

Overall Picture:

Movie: D- (but A for its boldness in being extremely campy)
Video: B
Audio: B-
Extra Features: D

- Chris Laurenzo
Staff Writer