Otis (2008) Review

Written by: chubungie   

What a fun ride that was!  I had a great time watching this horror comedy.  The story was exceptionally original and fresh.  I loved the music and the way it affected the moods of different scenes.  I hope they come out with a soundtrack!  The dialogue was very imaginative with some unparalleled lines for the characters, especially the mom.  She had me rolling!  Speaking of, Otis has an excellent cast of actors.  I would have to say that my favorite performance came from Illeana Douglas as the mother, Kate Lawson.  She is a genius! 

I loved her seriously savage character and she fit the role perfectly.  (I remember her most from Ghost World and Stir of Echoes.)  I just really loved her performance!  The serial killer, Otis, is played by Bostin Christopher, who is a big and scary looking dude.  He seemed to have a lot of fun playing his role too.  Ashley Johnson’s performance as Riley, Otis’ latest prisoner, was great.  She hits her mark perfectly every time, and she is pretty talented.  I remember seeing Ashley on TV a lot when she was a kid, and I have to say that she has grown up into quite a beautiful young woman.  Daniel Stern (I remember him from Home Alone) was also very funny as the wimpy dad.  Jared Kusnitz is a cute kid, and he gave a glowing performance as the dutiful son.  Kevin Pollak, who played the unfortunate roll of Otis’ brother, is a classic comedic actor, and Jere Burns (I’ve seen him all over TV for years) did a good job as Agent Hotchkiss

The factors to make a great horror comedy were all there:  a serial killer and his victim, plenty of gore (The gore was fabulous!  From dismemberment to torture, there is plenty of horror!  The blood looked real and there were some very inventive ideas of suffering.), all forms of sick hilarity, and a cast loveable enough to root for their triumph in the story!  Right down to the ending, Otis is a masterpiece.  This movie gets 4 out of 5 hairy eyeballs from me, and I will definitely be buying this DVD!