The Dead Room

Things that go bump in the night.
Paranormal spirits that haunt old, abandoned homes.
A claustrophobic setting.

These are just some of the haunted house horror movie tropes used since the dawn of time. But how many of these kinds of films can you name that take place in New Zealand, of all places?

Shout Factory's latest horror Blu-ray "The Dead Room" is that rare example, not only taking place in New Zealand but it was also filmed on location there. Based on a famous urban legend of a small farmhouse that's seemingly possessed by evil spirits, the film may generate fans that liked such recent fare as the "Paranormal Activity" series.

Luckily for those of us tired of the long past its prime "found footage" or documentary-style filming process, "The Dead Room" gets presented as it should: a straight-ahead spooker.

The slow-building tension of the first 60 minutes of "The Dead Room" may make certain viewers impatient in this tale of two researchers and a young female psychic sent to a supposedly haunted house. Soon, the 3 characters find themselves in the middle of unexplained and spooky events.

Filmmakers wisely focus on these three characters only and offer up a handful of others in the tension-filled final 15 minutes of the film. Using only one set adds to the enclosed feeling the viewer will get.

Under the Scream Factory imprint, the Blu-ray offers up only the film's trailer as its sole special feature.
But "The Dead Room" should be checked out anyway for 75 minutes of pure fun and an adrenaline rush.

"The Dead Room"
Blu-ray
$22.97
www.shoutfactory.com