Many consider the 1996 film Scream to be the pinnacle of the slasher movie spoof, but truthfully, there is nothing “spoof” about it; ultimately it’s just another tired slasher film that just happened to be self-aware and had some “hip” dialogue tossed in to make it seem fresher than, say, Nail Gun Massacre. On the flip side, director Eli Craig’s new film Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil is a truly funny take on the slasher-in-the-woods genre, one that’s supported by a very funny and likeable lead duo.
Tucker (Alan Tudyk, aka Wash from Firefly/Serenity and Steve the Pirate from Dodgeball) and Dale (Tyler Labine, aka Sock from the short-lived but great Reaper) are two nice but somewhat dim backwoods hillbillies who buy a vacation house that needs to be fixed up. At the same time, a group of college kids arrive in the area, looking for some camping fun. Through a series of misunderstandings, the college kids start to believe Tucker and Dale are vicious murderers and try to react appropriately, though their youthful ineptitude causes their own bodycount as T&D attempt to figure out what the hell is going on around them. In the meantime, they rescue and befriend one of the girls, Allison (Katrina Bowden), and in the middle of the gruesome events, she and Dale start to hit it off. As the war between the two sides escalates, we also get a real villain emerge, but I won’t spoil that part.
The good guys. No, I'm quite serious about that.
Tucker and Dale is a hilarious take on the whole Friday the 13th/Wrong Turn type films, and Tudyk and Labine are perfectly cast in their roles, especially Labine. Known mainly for smart-mouthed slacker roles, here he is exceptional in the role, playing clumsily sweet to the hilt. The chemistry between him and Bowden never feels forced and will actually strike a bit of a chord in every guy that’s been too nervous to talk to the pretty girl in the room.
As for the horror aspects, they’re done in such a way that at first they can be viewed as totally natural reactions to what is going on, and as they become more and more outlandish, they still work, paying tribute to the slasher flicks that came before them while at the same time giving them a bit of a nudge. But even as the audience begins to realize this is a film about friendship, love and the ability to move past judging a book by its cover, it never forgets to throw in some blood-splattered humor throughout.
Eli Craig has made a very enjoyable film in his feature length directorial debut. Along with co-writer Morgan Jurgenson, Craig has a real winner on his hands with Tucker and Dale. It ranks up there with Zombieland and Shaun of the Dead as far as recent great horror-comedies go, managing to balance blood, laughs and a sweet, gentle nature in a way that really entertains.
Also, this is Katrina Bowden, so yeah, several more reasons right there to watch the film.