'Doghouse' Movie Review

The UK has produced a wealth of horror-comedies in the early part of the 21st century, from the international hit Shaun of the Dead to lesser-known fare like The Cottage, Lesbian Vampire Killers and Evil Aliens. Now, Evil Aliens director Jake West returns to the fertile UK backwoods to mine material for another "splatter comedy," Doghouse.

Six 30-something English blokes decide to go away for a weekend of partying to help Vince (Stephen Graham) get over his recent divorce. (A seventh friend, the perennially late Banksy, falls behind with a broken-down van.) Vince still pines for his ex-wife, but his piggish mates, all stuck in dead-end relationships, try to convince him that he's better off single.

Mikey (Noel Clarke) has arranged for them to stay at his aunt's house in the secluded village of Moodley, where he claims women outnumber men four to one. When they arrive, though, they discover that this isn't such a good thing, because the town has been the subject of a military experiment that has turned the women into raving, murderous lunatics with a craving for male flesh.

Doghouse is a nice return to form for Jake West following the ill-advised made-for-TV sequel Pumpkinhead: Ashes to Ashes. While that film seemed to confine him to some sort of lame "SyFy standard" level of artistry, West is clearly in his element here, delivering a mix of broad, bawdy comedy and splattery gore with true cinematic flair.

Those of you familiar with Evil Aliens will probably appreciate the considerably higher budget of this film, although you still get the feeling that it deserved a bigger spectacle, as there was never a true "horde" of zombie-like infected in the movie -- rarely more than 10 or so.

Still, it's a fun film that draws you in with its lighthearted revelry and great look, full of grisly, over-the-top old-school makeup effects (read: no CGI) that are probably the main selling point of the movie. The FX folks clearly had fun designing the infected, crafting an individual persona for each, from the axe-wielding bride to the scissoring hairdresser to the obese housewife, the leather-clad goth witch and the burly butcher.

All of this makes for great atmosphere, but the script doesn't take full advantage of it. The humor is uneven and sometimes lazily written, favoring an easy gag or one-liner over something that takes more thought. The characters likewise could've used a bit more depth than the one-note characterizations we get (Neil = player, Matt = geek, Graham = gay, etc.) to make them more likable. As it is, the movie feels in stretches like an extended beer commercial: cheap, lowbrow, male-centric humor.

That said, the cast is good enough to sell the material, the pace is quick enough not to get bogged down in its shortcomings, and the overall fun of the concept -- guys trying to convince their friend that not all women are out to get him...oops -- make Doghouse an engaging, if shallow, treat.

• Acting: B- (Solid, although the comedic timing is uneven at times.)
• Direction: B (Madcap cinematic flair.)
• Script: C- (Fun concept, but lazy writing doesn't make full use of it.)
• Gore/Effects: A- (Awesome makeup effects, gore and character design.)
• Overall: B- (Zany low-brow fun with dubious morality.)

Doghouse is directed by Jake West and is not rated by the MPAA (though would certainly warrant an R). Release date: June 9, 2010 (on-demand); DVD release date TBD.

Disclosure: The company provided free access to this movie for review purposes. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.