PopHorror Let's Get Scared
A ton of shot-on-video stuff, while inspired, fell through the cracks during the home video explosion of the late 80s-early 90s. But, while dusting this stuff off for sharper new releases, Wild Eye’s Visual Vengeance unearthed a lost gem that was (Yikes!) shot on Super-8: The Wrong Door.
Synopsis
Ted falls in love and is involved in murder after accidentally knocking on the wrong door.
Have a look at the trailer!
A little heard of film, directed by the triumvirate of: James Groetsch (Drop Dead Fred), Shawn Korby, and Bill Weiss, The Wrong Door is a very ambitious little tale that succeeds in rising above its technical issues and budget.
Sound design student Ted (Matt Felmlee; The Strip) is busy at school learning the nuances of sound, and the effects it can have on a listener. Unfortunately, he is also forced to moonlight as a jester for parties and the like. One such evening, whilst wearing the low key humiliating costume, Ted goes to the titular wrong door and encounters the beautiful Jennifer (Loreal Steiner, not sure if she was named after the brand of women’s grooming products, or vice-versa…), instantly smitten, our hero gets the impression that something isn’t right.
Checking back on her, he finds the girl near death, with an intruder still lurking in the apartment. Fleeing the scene, poor, dead Jennifer turns up in the back of Ted’s VW Bug, and he’s soon trying to save not only his own skin, but elude Jennifer’s attackers, Jeff (Jeff Tatum; Drop Dead Gorgeous) and Vic (Chris Hall) who will stop at nothing to get a cassette tape from Ted that may or may not contain evidence of their crime.
Brilliantly written, and engaging despite its limitations, The Wrong Door is a fine example of micro budget cinema done extremely well. The lack of credits listed for some of the players above isn’t a mistake—these guys did very little after this, which is a shame, because there is some true talent on display here. Not-quite-Hitchcockian suspense, and a simple yet effective plot makes The Wrong Door a really rewarding watch. The cast and crew crafted an ambitious little film, without reaching too far and coming off as cheap or absurd. Sure, some of the acting is a little wonky, and props and sets are bare bones, but, like stated above, The Wrong Door rises above its budget and virtually makes you forget you’re watching a shot on Super-8 cheapie.
The folks at Wild Eye really do the best they can with the dubious quality of the source material of these Visual Vengeance releases. While the 2K scan here definitely gives you a “warts and all” picture and reveals the limitations of the source, it’s not terrible and the audio is surprisingly clean, with limited hiss and level issues (maybe because sound design is central theme??).
The Visual Vengeance series (like Scream Queen) is fast becoming known for the stellar collector’s grade extras and packaging, and The Wrong Door is no exception. Extras include interviews with everyone, and their brother, old Super-8 shorts by the directors, commentaries, trailers, vintage intros, and even the original Film Threat print review of the film. One has to wonder, how in the Hell do they dig up all of this archival material from a forgotten SOV film from 35 years ago? Some kind of voodoo is going on over at Wild Eye!
Of course, you also get the requisite reversible art, with the original VHS look, a folded mini-poster, and alt art slip cover, stickers, and a cool little door hanger.
The Wrong Door is flawed, but in a good way, and apparently, shows a lot of unrealized potential. Despite the lo-fi proceedings, The Wrong Door is a crisp, taut, effective little thriller that deserves a release like this.
Wild Eye Releasing’s Visual Vengeance Blu-ray of The Wrong Door is available now from fine retailers.
