DVD Preview: The Graves

N SKULL CITY, DEATH IS THE LEAST OF YOUR PROBLEMS.

The debut feature written, produced and directed by award winning comic book creator and writer and founder of Chaos Comics, Brian Pulido (whose works include ‘Lady Death’, ‘Evil Ernie’ and ‘Purgatori’), The Graves is a gory, blood-soaked shocker that begins in the ‘survival horror’ vein of films such as ‘Wrong Turn’, ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’, ‘Staunton Hill’, ‘House Of 1000 Corpses’ and ‘Timber Falls’ before unleashing an unexpected supernatural twist.

A real crowdpleaser at LA’s After Dark Horrorfest in January 2010, the film stars horror genre veterans Bill Moseley (Halloween; Grindhouse; The Devil’s Rejects), Tony Todd (The Rock; Candyman) and Amanda Wyss (A Nightmare On Elm Street; Fast Times At Ridgemont High), alongside relative newcomers and future ‘scream queens’ in the making, Jillian Murray(Cheerleader Camp; Fifty Pills) and Clare Grant (Black Snake Moan; Walk The Line).

Attractive, self-assured ass-kicker Megan Graves (Grant) and her cute, Goth, kid sister, Abby (Murray), are inseparable siblings with a mutual love of comics, pop culture and rock and roll. Sadly, the offer of a job in New York means Megan will soon be moving east and leaving Abby behind. As a final send off before Megan’s departure, the pair decides to go on a wild road trip through the uncharted areas of the Arizona desert in search of kitschy roadside attractions.

The journey leads them to Skull City and its abandoned mine, rumoured to be haunted and harbouring terrifying secrets. Shortly after arriving at the dubious tourist trap, the sisters witness the brutal killings of a group of fellow visitors and soon find themselves the targets of a band of psychotic locals with a keen interest in torture, mutilation and murder. But there is far more to the perceived terrors that threaten the lives of Megan and Abby than meets the eye. In their desperate bid to escape Skull City, they fall into the hands of Reverend Abraham Stockton (Todd) and the followers of The Church of the Devout Ascension. There, they discover there are far worse things to fear than death.

The Graves (cert. 18) will be released on DVD (£15.99) by Anchor Bay Entertainment on 31st May 2010. Special Features include: introduction to the feature by director Brian Pulido; audio commentary by Brian Pulido and cinematographer Adam Goldfine; behind the scenes interviews; Tattoos video; Spot the Gnome; Tour of Vulture City; VCM News piece; LD comic; Mischief Night comic; Making Fun of a Bad Special Effect; Clare Grant – Faces and Botched Takes; bloopers; photo gallery; marketing materials gallery.