Violence for the sake of violence.  That is the phrase that comes to mind as I look back at my viewing of The Devil’s Rejects DVD.  Is that a good thing or a bad thing?  I’m not sure.  The film is really not bad, not bad at all but it is not a horror film.  It is an exploitation film.  It is guns and sex and ass whooping and more sex.  Sure, some of the things that the Firefly clan does are horrifying but as a whole the film is more of a demented buddy film. 

The film is very solidly acted.  Sid Haig turns in what is probably his best screen performance ever.  The scene where he attempts to car jack a woman and her son is just plain creepy and kind of strangely funny.  Bill Moseley is just plain vile as Otis and Sheri Moon is beautiful and uninhibited and a perfect female lead to the 2 perverted freaks that her character is partnered with.

There will be spoilers a head so if you don’t want to know what happens, stop reading now and go rent of buy the film. 

Okay, ready to proceed?  So, the film opens and closes with gunfire, lots and lots of gunfire.  Slow motion gun shots, blood exploding.  Who cares, nothing new, nothing exciting.  It is well done but senseless.

As I am writing this I am also watching the premiere of Masters of Horror and it is occurring to me that there is smart horror and then there is dumb horror both can look and sound good but the smart horror is always better.  It is so much better to not know hat to expect.  I think that may be my main problem with The Devil’s Rejects, it looks good, it sounds good but there is just no substance.  When all is said and done you end up just not really giving a shit.  Other than a few funny quips from Otis and The Captain this film will just wash away into obscurity. 

Rob Zombie is a good director, he really is.  I loved his camera work and his shot choices.  He has a real flare for film and his camera motion and pacing kept me watching even though I didn’t really give a shit about what was happening on the screen.  It will be great to watch his work on an actual horror film one day.

Let’s cut to the chase, is the DVD worth wasting you time and money on?  Yeah it is, if for no other reason than to watch an up and coming director get his sea legs.  There are a lot of good things in The Devil’s Rejects unfortunately story is not one of them.

The disc itself if very well put together.  The extras are plentiful and well done.  The film comes as a 2 disc unrated directors cut and features 2 different commentaries, one with Rob Zombie and another with the principal actors.  Also included are a blooper reel and tons of other stuff for fans of the film.  The second disc is a making of feature titled 30 Day in Hell:  The Making of The Devil's Rejects. 

The disc hits stores on November 8th .