Review of Dead Birds

Wow, DEAD BIRDS starts off on a strong footing, with an well-staged bank robbery and subsequent trek through the countryside by a band of renegade soldiers who've abandoned their army during the American Civil War. The film boasts strong production values for a low budget, and plenty of atmosphere in its depiction of the war-torn countryside. The cast is pretty interesting too, with the likes of former child star Henry Thomas, a pre-fame Michael Shannon, and Isaiah Washington excelling as the soldiers-turned-outlaws.

I really thought we were going to be in for something special here, because for the first hour DEAD BIRDS puts every foot right, especially thanks to a wonderful soundtrack. It's all single, extended notes and distorted noise, and it builds up a superbly creepy atmosphere as the gang reach a haunted house in the middle of nowhere and bed down for the night.

Then, sadly, it falls apart. Nothing much is explained, and instead the group are picked off one by one by barely-seen spirits. There are some gory bits, and some more creepy bits, but none of it makes much sense, and it stays like that till the very end. I loved the Lovecraftian flavour of the unfolding incidents but with a better story this could have been something special; as it is it just sort of lapses into nothingness.