Driftwood (DVD)

Fans of low-budget horror loved the crazy camp-fest that was 2001 Maniacs, co-written (with Chris Kobin) and directed by Tim Sullivan, and featuring genre faves Robert Englund, Christa Campbell, and Eli Roth. It was loopy, gory, sexy, and wildly over-the-top. So, how does a filmmaker top it?

By doing something — as Monty Python might say — completely different.

Driftwood is the somber, bittersweet story of rebellious David Forrester (Ricky Ullman), a teenager who is sent to a so-called "attitude adjustment" camp by his paranoid parents after their eldest son commits suicide. They don't want to make any of the same mistakes with David, and see this tough-love option as their only one.

Camp Driftwood is run with an iron fist by the cruel Captain Doug Kennedy (Diamond Dallas Page), and is haunted by the gloomy ghosts of kids gone by. One spirit in particular, Jonathan (Connor Ross), reaches out to David, forcing the withdrawn boy to get proactive… and perhaps risk his own life to find out what's really going on under the Captain's watch.

Indeed the supernatural elements are there, but Driftwood is more about the horror of human nature than it is about the events which led to the various deaths depicted in the film.  While hardly a fast-paced actioner, this slow-burn thriller should still hold the interest of viewers who can appreciate a mystery with a gradual build.

A lot of time is spent getting to know not only our protagonist and antagonist, but those in their orbit: There's the Captain's sexy daughter Myra (Baelyn Neff), who turns out to be more than just a pretty face; David's dorm-mate, Noah (Jeremy Lelliot), who knows more about Driftwood's ugly secret than he's willing to reveal; and sadistic guard Yates (Talan Torriero), a young man who actually did time in those dreary reform school barracks, and yet chose to stay on day in and day out. Why? The answer might surprise you.

Driftwood really isn't a feel-good movie, nor is it terribly scary if you're in the mood for a horror flick, but it's thought-provoking and it features some good acting and nice cinematography. It could perhaps have been a bit tighter in the editing department, but mostly judicious choices were made (as evidenced by the extended ending on the DVD extras).

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