Recent Reviews
DVD Review: Satan's Playground
By Dave Dreher
Aug 27, 2006, 17:29

Dante Tomaselli’s new film Satan’s Playground is out on DVD.  I watched it last night and have a kind of missed bag of feelings towards it. 

First off I want to let it be known that I think all film fans, not just horror fans but film fans NEED to watch this film.  Tomaselli is a ground breaking director.  His work on Satan’s Playground is very reminiscent of Sam Raimi’s early work; actually one could possibly say that he owes a lot of his filming style to Raimi.  While he does certainly use techniques that Raimi pioneered Tomaselli takes it to a new level.  His shot construction is superior with some shots bordering on breathtaking. 

Where the film needs some serious help is in the building of the story line.  I actually did not completely understand the film until I watched the special features which contain a short interview with Dante in which he explains the genesis of the film and at that point it all clicked for me.  I’m actually going to suggest that prior to watching the feature you check out that short interview with Dante first.  It will make the viewing much more enjoyable for you.  It turns out that Satan’s Playground is about the fabled Jersey Devil an entity that is rumored to have lived in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey.  If you remember The Last Broadcast then you should be well versed on the legend of the Jersey Devil.

Some minor spoilers lie ahead but nothing that will ruin the film for you.

The film opens abruptly with a women jumping out of a van onto a country road.  It is pitch black and deserted.  No explanation is given as to who this woman is or why she has found herself wandering presumably drunk or high in this less then favorable area.  It is not long till some strange sounds and movement in the trees and in the sky above attracts this ladies attention and soon after our lovely stranger is attacked.

We are then dropped into a car full of people that includes stars Felissa Rose and Ellen Sandweiss.  Also in the car is an older dude who is driving, a newborn baby and a very silent teenage boy who we later find out is Rose’s characters son and is autistic. 

There are several long scenes of flashing back and forth between these characters as an attempt is made at explaining who these people are and why we should care what happens to them.  It is not long till the car becomes stuck in a hole in the road.  Now if a hole in the road is big enough to get your car stuck in don’t you think you would see it before driving into it?  This part of the film all takes part in the daylight by the way.  I found that scene a little annoying. 

Anyway, the car gets stuck and they can’t get it out so of course the older driving guy wanders off into the woods to find help and of course stumbles across the ever present “house in the woods” which is inhabited by an old woman (who looks like Lloyd Kaufman in a wig) and her very strange pig tail wearing daughter.  Things go quickly downhill and folks start to die.  That is the story in a nutshell. 

At no point during this opening is it eluded to that we are in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey or that what may be lurking in the woods is the Jersey Devil.  I guess we are just supposed to know this somehow.

Although I found these huge plot holes annoying I also found that the outstanding visual flare of Dante Tomaselli made it all just go away.  Watching this guy’s work is just mesmerizing.  He uses his camera like an artist uses his brush and the results are spectacular.

Oh, one other thing.  I was kind of surprised by the lack of blood in this little ditty.  I’m not sure why but I was expecting a kind of blood bath but with the exception of one outstanding throat slitting scene the film is very light on the red stuff

I can’t stress enough though that you should seek out this film and see and see a talented director doing his thing before he makes it big.  We are going to be talking about Dante Tomaselli for many years to come.

Anchor Bay has released this title and is always the case when you see that little Anchor Bay boat you know that you are going to get a first rate disc.  The special features are pretty much that expected standard fare.  You’ve got the directors commentary, a behind the scenes montage and the fore mentioned short interview with Tomaselli which remember you should watch before you watch the film.