Review of The Roost (2005) by Nick O — 23 Feb 2010

An awesome throwback to original midnight monster movies. The Roost is a fun, wholly satisfying bloodbath that leaves much to the imagination.

I wasn't a fan of writer-director-editor Ti West's later flick The House of the Devil, unlike a lot of people. It was too slow and the ending came way too fast if you ask me. As it seems to be West's style, one need have a large amount of patience to handle one of his movies. But The Roost always has some type of trick up its sleeve, a surprising bit of fearless jolt constantly waiting around the corner.

The Roost is about four kids on the way to a friend's wedding ceremony, when their truck gets stuck on a rock. In the middle of nowhere. With a load of dangerous bats. Duh-duh-DUH...The movie never establishes why I should care what happens to these teens, however I found myself to be so completely engrossed in the fashionable sophistication West films the movie in that the question became almost irrelevant. An obstacle The House of the Devil was never able to overcome.

Even the dorky horror host subplot with Tom Noonan was irresistible entertainment. The Roost is a cheesy homage to '80s teen slasher flicks with a story so utterly senseless; though it's what West does with the camera and the refreshing vibe he leaves The Roost with that made me love it. Jeff Grace's heart-pounding score and Eric Robbin's cinematography find the terror in the ordinary. West's movies thrive on the worst-case-scenario of the most common fears embedded in our brains. Can't wait to see The Innkeepers, man.