I remember hearing about Tucker & Dale vs Evil back a ways when it was premiering at Sundance close to 2 years ago. Now its near full distribution, and more and more cities are showing it at smaller theaters. Good thing too. Its not very often that I am THIS excited about seeing a movie. It seemed to have a Dumb & Dumber spin on a Wrong Turn-ish looking flick. Cool huh? I was primed and ready to go. We had stopped at the bar there before going to seeing the movie to kill some time. A few beers later it was show time.
Title characters, Tucker (Alan Tudyk) and Dale (Tyler Labine), are heading up to the cabin they bought as a fixer-upper. As well as drink some beer, do some fishing, and drink some more beer. Also heading into the woods are a group of the typical good looking college kids from all the co-ed clichés. The good old boys meet up with the pretty boys at local gas station while filling up on their weekend supplies. The ‘squeal like a pig’ appearance of Tucker and Dale isn’t exactly comforting to the college group. And to be fair, the Saved by the Bell look doesn’t really excite Tucker. Dale, on the other hand thinks he finds true love and tries introducing himself with a sickle in hand, looking like the redneck Grim Reaper. That sits about as well as you’d expect. A big bearded man with a sickle laughing nervously at you might give some strange vibes. Too bad they don’t know there is more to Tucker and Dale. A couple fun loving, beer chugging, really cool guys. Far less dangerous than the other group.
At night, while Tucker and Dale are out fishing, Allison (Katrina Bowden) and the rest of her friends thought it’d be fun to go skinny dipping. An accident lands Allison out cold in the water, and Tucker and Dale in the right spot to save her. When the two try flagging down the rest of Allison’s friends for help, the group panics, and they take off in fear. Too bad they didn’t know Allison couldn’t have been in better hands. After retreating back to camp for a rescue and revenge plan, Allison’s friends arm themselves with their combined knowledge of the horror movies they’ve seen, and…. their wit, I guess. More lack of it really. With every attempt at rescue of their friend, some crazy bloody shit happens that leaves Tucker and Dale wondering what the hell is wrong with these kids?
OVERALL SUMMARY
T & D takes us back to the roots of comedy horror movies. Creativity, some good old fashion writing, and keeping the special effects simple and fun. I’m tired of movies thrown together in someone’s back yard and edited with Photoshop. These movies are hitting the shelves at the video store way too fast. While Tucker & Dale is FINALLY getting its well deserved release. This is a movie to sit and watch with some friends and a few beers. Roll up a cooler of Old Milwaukee, throw on your favorite pair of overalls and prepare to just have a good time.
