The Black Waters of Echo's Pond - Blu-ray Review - Anchor Bay

Where Your Deepest Secrets Are Revealed

Released by: Starz / Anchor Bay
Release Date: September 10, 2013
Production Year: 2009
Region Code: A
Running Time: 1:32:37
Audio: English Dolby TrueHD 5.1
Video: 1080p (1.78:1 Aspect Ratio)
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish

THE FILM:

During a Turkish archaeological dig early last century, an ancient board game said to have entertained demons was unearthed. Now nearly 90 years later, a group of vacationing friends – including a cynic (Danielle Harris of HALLOWEEN), a rich jerk (James Duval of DONNIE DARKO), a slutty starlet (Mircea Monroe of “Hart Of Dixie”), a jock (Nick Menell of FRIDAY THE 13TH) and prudish twin sisters (Electra & Elise Avellan of GRINDHOUSE) – discover the game hidden in an old house on a remote Maine island. And with a roll of the dice, their darkest secrets will unleash all the greed, jealously and lusts of Hell itself. Richard Tyson (BLACK HAWK DOWN) and Robert Patrick (TERMINATOR 2: JUDGEMENT DAY) co-star in this gory shocker

"The Black Waters of Echo's Pond" sounds interesting and looks interesting from the trailer. But it's a horror film of average quality. It is still an alright way to spend 90 minutes. The film does have some good cast members like Danielle Harris and Robert Patrick, and some of them get their hands dirty during the film. Speaking of death scenes, some meet their demise in a variety of ways with a fair amount of blood and gore. This film reminds me of a horror version of "Jumanji" with the whole board game aspect. 

AUDIO:

This Blu-ray has one option which is a English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 audio track. It does a fair job with the sound effects, dialog and score. I did notice that sometimes the dialog was a bit lower in volume compared to the score or sound effects. Overall the audio is still fine and shouldn't have anyone straining to hear what is being said. There are English SDH as well as Spanish Subtitles included for those that need them.

VIDEO:

"The Black Waters of Echo's Pond" floats its way on to Blu-ray thanks to Starz / Anchor Bay. The film is presented in 1080p with a 1.78:1 Aspect Ratio. Video quality is good for the most part but there is a definite lack of fine detail. It's not terrible or even bad. But it has a noticeable softer look than you would expect. However, in some well lit, close up shots, fine detail is improved and looks pretty good. Colors vary throughout, sometimes looking a bit flat and other times looking fine. It could be a combination of the lighting and camera used. Either way, again, it is not a huge detriment to the film. Black levels looked fine. Skin tones appeared natural although you may wonder sometimes, but I think it is because they may have filmed using only the lights in the actual scene and did not add extra lighting to brighten everything like some films do. It can make it seem like the lighting is uneven but I think it looks more natural.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

Alternate Opening (2:36) - The only extra on this release is an alternate opening scene. It's worth watching at least for the blood and gore. 

IN CONCLUSION:

An average film and an average Blu-ray release. Given the amount of time it took for the film to actually get a release after it was completed, a commentary track with the cast or crew could have been interesting. Even a making-of featurette or some interviews would have been nice. But that is the way it goes sometimes. The price on this release has come down a fair amount since its release so you may be able to pick it up cheap if it interests you. I would really only recommend this to those that had seen the film and want to own the Blu-ray or if you are a fan of one or more of the stars. It is not something I revisit often but it is probably the third time I have watched the film. I am a Danielle Harris fan, plus I like the movie just enough to not regret my purchase.

OVERALL: 2.5 / 5